Tangedco to Set up 500 MW Solar Power Plant at Kadaladi

The project is billed as the largest such plant to be established by a power utility, and will be covered under the Centre’s solar power parks programme.

In a significant development, the Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (Tangedco) is planning to install a 500 MW solar power plant at Kadaladi in Ramanathapuram district with the support of the Central government.

The project is billed as the largest such plant to be established by a power utility, and will be covered under the Centre’s solar power parks programme.

The total installed capacity of solar power plants in the State at present is around 2,000 MW. Besides, plants for 1,500 MW are being planned.

The State government had earlier proposed to set up a 4,000 MW coal-fired thermal power project at Kadaladi.

However, the Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) committee of the Ministry of Environment and Forests turned down the proposal, as the three possible sites identified for the project came under the buffer zone of the Marine National Park of the Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve.

The EAC had also suggested the power utility against the drawal or discharge of water from or to the Gulf of Mannar. Apart from looking for an alternative site, Tangedco has decided to get technical opinion on whether a power plant of the same size with air cooled condensers could be set up. “In all likelihood, the original thermal power project may not fructify,” an official said.rce:

Source: The Hindu