By: Vijay Kumar Verma, Group Editor-ICN World
SHIMLA : Despite unprecedented lean inflows experienced in river Satluj badly impacting hydro power generation the country’s largest 1500 MW Nathpa Jhakri hydro power station has been able to generate 2140 million units of electricity during the first quarter of FY 20, told Ravi Negi, Head of the Power station. He told that with optimum utilization of machines and effective operations and maintenance, the project has been able to achieve this generation. He told that the greatest impact of lower discharge in the river Satluj was experienced during the month of April 2020 when only 308 million units of electricity was produced against 541 million units generated during the corresponding month of last year. The lower discharge in the river was optimally utilized in the month of May 2020 with generation of 726 million units of electricity and still bettering it to 1088 million units during the month of June.
Ravi Negi informed that the total generation achieved was the result of efficiency of engineers and workers engaged at the plant. The power plant, he told was designed to generate about 6612 million units of electricity during the entire year.
Ravi Negi further informed that the company was implementing a one megawatt solar power plant in the project area. This plant, he said, was under advanced stage of construction through the Solar Power Corporation of India. Already a 310 KW solar power plant is in in operation which is located at Surge shaft of the project.
The power generation will be fed into the state grid for drawal for captive utilisation, he said.
During the previous financial year Ravi Negi told that the power plant had generated 7445 million units of energy which was the second highest generation achieved ever since commercial operations of the power plant commenced in 2003-04. The Plant Availability Factor during the past year had been recorded at 107 percent against 103 percent recorded earlier.
At the second stage a 412MW Rampur hydro power station is also generating over 2000 million units of electricity, he told, thus adding to the operational efficiency of the upstream project and installed capacity of the company.
