Work on 4,000 MW Cheyyur power project to begin soon

CHENNAI
: The Kancheepuram district administration will soon begin acquiring land for the 4,000 MW ultra mega power project at Cheyyur, about 100
km south of Chennai. The Cheyyur UMPP, along with a similar project proposed to be located in Marakkanam in Villupuram district, is seen as part of a long-term solution to the state's power problems. At present, the state suffers from a severe power crunch, with a shortfall of 1,800 MW in its existing demand of 9,000 MW. Official sources told The Times of India that of 1,700 acres of land required for the project, 800 acres would be government land, and 900 acres would have to be acquired from private land-owners. Three villages -Vedal, Sitharkkadu and Cheyyur - have been identified for land acquisition, which would begin once the state government gives its administrative sanction, which is expected shortly. The UMPP is expected to cost at least Rs 16,000 crore. "Once the land is acquired, which will be done within six months after the government's approval, it will take eight years to complete the project," the sources said. Both projects are to be jointly executed by the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) and Power Finance Corporation (PFC). While the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) gave its nod nearly two years ago for the Cheyyur project, the one in Marakkanam is yet to get clearance. With an installed capacity of 4,000 mw each, these power plants will be the largest thermal plants in the state, and are expected to be a boon to the people of Tamil Nadu, who until a fortnight ago were forced to suffer from load-shedding for several hours every day. Though recent rains have brought some respite to the city, where power cuts are on hold, people in the rural areas still have to go without power for at least two hours everyday. One of the salient features of the Cheyyur project is that it will use super-critical technology, which helps achieve higher levels of fuel efficiency, thereby saving fuel and keeping greenhouse gas emissions low. At present, nearly a dozen such projects are in various stages of execution in the country. After some delay, mainly due to worries that land prices were very high and may ultimately push up the tariff, the state government finally decided to go ahead with the Cheyyur project. It did not want to change the project site to avoid any further delay.