CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu will require around 12,400MW of additional thermal power capacity by 2034-35 to meet its projected electricity demand, Union power ministry informed Lok Sabha on Thursday.Of this, 2,640MW is under construction, 1,000MW is under bidding and a notice inviting tender has been issued for another 660MW, minister of state for power Shripad Naik said in a written reply. This leaves around 8,100MW to be either developed or tied up through power procurement agreements. “Tamil Nadu may either set up the balance capacity or tie up power from generation projects located within or outside the state,” Union minister of state for power Shripad Naik said, while responding to DMK MPs, Rani Srikumar, C N Annadurai and G Selvam.The state’s Resource Adequacy Plan, prepared in consultation with the Central Electricity Authority, covers the period till 2035-36. It is part of a rolling 10-year exercise intended to keep generation capacity ahead of projected peak demand and includes both power generation and procurement planning.Two state-sector projects, with a combined estimated cost of Rs 35,235 crore, are currently under construction. The 1,320MW Udangudi Super Thermal Power Project Stage-I, estimated to cost Rs 14,572 crore, comprises two 660MW units. The first is expected to be commissioned in August, and the second in December this year. The 1,320MW Ennore Special Economic Zone project, comprising two units of 660MW each, has an estimated cost of Rs 20,663 crore. Its units are scheduled to be commissioned in August and December next year.The state has also proposed four more thermal projects with a combined capacity of 4,900MW. These include the 660MW Ennore Thermal Power Station expansion, estimated at Rs 6,380.81 crore, for which a tender has been floated under the tariff-based competitive bidding route. The proposed 1,600MW Uppur thermal project, estimated to cost Rs 12,778 crore, is also planned through competitive bidding. Land acquisition is under way for Udangudi Stage-II and Stage-III, each comprising two 660MW units. Naik did not provide the cost estimates for these two projects.He said the CEA was monitoring projects through site visits and discussions with developers and other stakeholders to resolve bottlenecks affecting commissioning. The state’s intra-state transmission network has already been planned to evacuate electricity from the Udangudi and Ennore projects.
