Tamil Nadu shows the way for Green energy by building 4 GW exclusive Electricity transmission networks
LDK is imploding into irrelevance as Revenue contracts to only $100 million
June 17, 2013Indian Solar Thermal Plants in a world of trouble, many of them not to get built
June 18, 2013Tamil Nadu has been at the forefront of green energy generation in India, with almost half of the country’s wind energy capacity. The state has also taken a lead in solar energy generation, by planning for 1 GW of solar capacity to be built during each of the next 3 years. The state’s transmission network has been performing poorly for some time as the new wind farms being built have not got interconnection. This is a common problem plaguing all the places which are seeing rapid wind energy growth. China has hundreds of farms which have been built but can’t get transmission facilities.
Also read Why Solar Power in Tamil Nadu has an advantage over Wind Power.
Green energy developers are facing a huge problem as the Indian government is not enforcing the RPO obligation of the states who are not meeting their green energy commitments. The REC market has now become a dud market as power distributors are not buying RECs since nobody is punishing them for not meeting their statutory obligations. This is a big problem which needs to be urgently sorted out, otherwise Manmahon Singh’s ambitions green plan of 15% RE generation by 2020 will remain a paper plan only.
Billed as the first of their kind in the country, two major high-capacity transmission corridors, exclusively meant for renewable energy, are being set up in Tamil Nadu. Estimated to a cost Rs. 4,400 crore, the corridors are capable of evacuating at least 2,000 megawatt (MW) each, says an official of the Tamil Nadu Transmission Corporation (Tantransco), which is executing the transmission projects.One corridor is from Kayathar of Tuticorin district to Sholinganallur, now part of the limits of Chennai Corporation, and the other, between Thappagundu of Theni district to Salem. The first corridor, covering about 700 km, is likely to be commissioned by March next while the other line, with a length of about 400 km, is expected to be ready by 2014 end. Aimed at addressing concerns of investors in the wind energy sector regarding inadequate evacuation facilities in the State, the two corridors will take care of the State’s future requirements too. Secondly, to some extent, the transmission line meant for evacuating power from the proposed Kudankulam Nuclear Power Station is being used to transmit from windmills. Once the Kudankulam Station is commissioned shortly, that line can no longer be relied upon. The transmission projects are being funded by the Rural Electrification Corporation and Power Finance Corporation, both agencies of the Central government.