CHENNAI: In a move to boost its power generation capacity amid rising electricity demand, the Tamil Nadu Power Generation Corporation (TNPGCL) has decided to increase the proposed installed capacity of Udangudi thermal power plants Stages II and III in Thoothukudi district by a combined 560MW.The two plants were initially planned to have a capacity of 1,320MW each, with two 660MW units apiece.This would have added 2,640MW to the state’s coal-based power capacity. At its board meeting on Monday, TNPGCL decided to increase the capacity of each unit to 800MW, taking the combined capacity of the two plants to 3,200MW.The board has decided to seek state government approval for the revision and appoint a consultant to prepare a detailed feasibility report and a detailed project report before inviting tenders under the public-private partnership (PPP) model.Tamil Nadu currently has seven thermal power stations with a combined installed capacity of 5,780MW. These include Thoothukudi Thermal Power Station (1,050MW), Mettur Thermal Power Station Stage I (840MW) and Stage II (600MW), and North Chennai Thermal Power Station Stages I (630MW), II (1,200MW) and III (800MW).The first 660MW unit of the Udangudi Stage I plant was connected to the grid in September, while the second 660MW unit is expected to be commissioned before summer next year.A TNPGCL official said expanding the capacity of the proposed plants would be easier than setting up a new plant.“These plants are to come up on 1,500 acres of land adjacent to the Stage I plant and land acquisition is nearly 90% complete. The work is likely to begin in the next six months,” the official said.Electricity and law minister CTR Nirmal Kumar confirmed the revision on Wednesday and said plans for the Uppur thermal power plant and the Ennore Thermal Power Station expansion would also be reviewed.“It is a criminal mistake of the previous DMK govt for not focusing on these plants after spending crores for them,” he said.The minister also defended high-cost power purchases, saying Tamil Nadu does not resort to load shedding by suspending supply, unlike Karnataka and some other states.He added that the state was planning to sign long-term power purchase agreements with private generators to secure cheaper electricity.
