Though the general feedback of Tamil Nadu towards the Union Budget has been negative, the proposed policy for pumped storage projects, as mentioned in the document, seems to be a silver lining for the State.
This is because Tamil Nadu has a pumped storage station at Kadamparai in Coimbatore district, with four units of 100 megawatt (MW) each.
Besides, the Tamil Nadu Green Energy Corporation Limited – the utility for green energy (hydro, wind and solar) – is implementing the Kundah Pumped Storage Hydro-Electric Project (4x125 MW) in the Nilgiris district at a cost of ₹3,523.37 crore. The scheduled year of commissioning for the project is 2025-26.
The Corporation has decided to implement the Upper Bhavani Pumped Storage Project (4 x 250 MW), also in the Nilgiris, at a cost of ₹3,905 crore as a joint venture project involving the NTECL, which runs three units of the Vallur Thermal Power Station (VTPS) with a capacity of 1,500 MW.
Three more projects – Sandy Nalla Pumped Storage (4 x 300 MW), Sigur Pumped Storage (4 x 200 MW), both in the Nilgiris; and the Vellimalai Pumped Storage (4 x 275 MW) in Kanniyakumari – have been mooted under the public-private partnership (PPP) model with the International Finance Corporation as the transaction advisor. Besides, 11 other projects are in the pipeline. Memoranda of Understanding have been signed at this year’s Global Investors’ Meet for 1,600 MW of pumped storage plants. However, a government official says one has to await further details before concluding whether the policy will be beneficial to Tamil Nadu or not.
