Apart from other constraints like severe shortage of fuel, particularly natural gas, and inadequate inflows into reservoirs which affects hydro-electricity generation badly, transmission corridor has become one of the major challenges for meeting the abnormal demand for power in the state.
Keeping this in view, the state government has decided to vigorously pursue with the Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (PGCIL) expediting PGCIL’s transmission projects with the latest technology of gas-insulated 765 KV substations and extra high tension (EHT) lines in the southern region, particularly in Andhra Pradesh with an investment of Rs 6,000 crore by the end of the next financial year to ease power shortage in the southern states to some extent.
Disclosing the details, principal secretary (energy) M.Sahoo, who had a detailed discussion with APTransco chairman and managing director Hiralal Samaria in this regard, said here on Sunday that top officials of power sector had recently visited New Delhi and pursued the matter of improving the transmission corridor availability to southern states.
The power generation in gas-based projects has been badly affected due to the unprecedented shortage of natural gas. Besides, power utilities have not been able to import the required power from other regions due to the problem of transmission corridor, which ultimately forced Discoms to impose power restrictions in the state. That is why the state government is going to raise the issue with PGCIL to resolve the major constraints by expediting the construction of 765 KV substations and EHT lines in the state for importing power from northern, eastern and western (NEW) regions which would give relief to the country’s power-starved southern states. At present, 1,000 MW transmission corridor is available between southern and northern, and eastern and western grids and shared by the other states within the southern region i.e Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Goa.
PGCIL is expected to add considerable additional capacity of transmission corridor to Andhra Pradesh by 2013-14, Sahoo said.
Sahoo who assumed charge as the principal secretary (energy) on Saturday, suggested to the APTransco to initiate measures to strengthen intra-state and inter-state transmission system for purchasing additional power from other states to meet the requirements of consumers. The existing infrastructure of PGCIL in southern region consists of ten 400 KV high- voltage direct current substations with a transformation capacity of 6,300 megavolt ampere and 7,213 circuit kilometres of 400 KV HVAC and 1,910 ckms of 500KV transmission lines.
Hiralal Samaria said the PGCIL had informed the APTransco that seven new 765/400 KV substations were under construction by PGCIL at Nellore, Raichur, Kurnool, Hyderabad, Khammam, Vemagiri and Srikakulam with the state-of-the-art technology of gas-insulated substations which will increase the stability of the southern grid and reduces congestion in transmission corridor. For strengthening the reliability of the power system in the southern region, 765 KV double circuit line between Kurnool and Tiruvalem (Tamil Nadu) and a 400 KV double circuit line between Gooty and Madhugiri (Karnataka) are under construction by PGCIL, which will also transmit bulk power with maximum efficiency.
For the first time in the state, a double circuit 765 KV high- capacity transmission line is being laid between Nellore and Kurnool which is capable of handling about 5,000 MW apart from the Nellore-Gooty 400 KV double Circuit line, to evacuate 6000 MW from the Krishnapatnam area to increase the state’s energy handling capacity.
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