IBRAHIMPATNAM (KRISHNA DT.): The AP-Power Generation Corporation Limited (AP-Genco) is gearing up for construction of the new 800 MW unit at Dr. Narla Tatarao Thermal Power Station (NTTPS) here.
The Balance-of-Plant (BoP) works have just begun and they will, in a few months, facilitate grounding of the Boiler-Turbine-Generator (BTG) component of the Rs.5,300 crore expansion project.
As Chennai-based BGR Energy Systems Limited started work on the BoP (civil) structures, the public sector behemoth, Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), which won the EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) contract, mobilised nearly 4,000 tonnes of material needed to install the BTG and other equipment.
Electrostatic precipitator columns and generator bearings were among the equipment brought in advance and kept to be assembled once the BoP works come to an end.
Speaking to The Hindu , NTTPS Chief Engineer M. Padma Sujatha said the expansion project (Stage-V) was poised to be completed by the end of 2019. The existing capacity of 1,760 MW would then reach 2,560 MW.
Coal linkages for the new unit had been tied up through the MSTC. It would be imported coal containing just about 15 per cent ash content compared to 32 per cent in the coal sourced from within the country.
Coming to the existing plant’s coal requirement, Ms. Sujatha said it had a stock of approximately two lakh tonnes as on date.
Allocation of coal from the Sarpal-Naupada blocks in Odisha, which are under development, would ensure continuous supply to the NTTPS for a long time.
For now, NTTPS sources coal from Talcher and Singareni collieries.
Ms. Sujatha said new 400 KV lines were to be laid from the plant to Thullur in the coming years for providing power to Amaravati.
Besides, a Flue Gas Desulphurization (FGD) plant was proposed to reduce pollution, duly keeping in view the location of the capital city, Amaravati, across the river Krishna.
The FGD plant was an expensive proposition, but it was considered essential because of its advanced technology that makes the exhaust flue gases less harmful.
