In The Dark
The TNEB chairman, S. Machendranathan, did not respond to BW’s queries on the state’s power logjam. But, at a function organised by the board in Chennai recently, he reportedly admitted that poor addition to power generation facilities in the past few years was the reason for the state’s failure to meet surging requirements.
Two major JVs with the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) will contribute 1,000 MW each, but only at the turn of the decade. Help will come from ongoing expansions at the Kudankulam nuclear power project and the Neyveli thermal station, but they are central schemes that require TN to share output with its power-starved neighbours. Only five out of the 20-odd private sector projects, commissioned by the government in the early 1990s, have been completed.
Alternative Thinking
The cost of alternative sources of power make them unviable for most manufacturing units. Per unit cost for power produced from diesel-run generators works out to Rs 12, almost thrice that of grid power. Furnace oil costs Rs 8.20 per unit. Wind power, though feasible, has run into rough weather due to infrastructure bottlenecks (see ‘Gone With The Wind’ on page 54).
The steady, if slow, deterioration in TN’s power situation should have prompted industries with heavy power needs to go in for captive generation, say observers. But a proposal from textile mills to set up a 500 MW coal-based plant for their exclusive use is only gathering dust. Large textile and auto ancillary units have opted for a high capacity direct line, which ensures hassle-free supply. But this costs Rs. 2.5-3 crore and not many units can afford it.
Elsewhere, “We are going in for alternative methods to tackle the power problem,” says S. Rathinasamy, vice president of Sakthi Auto, an Erode-based auto component maker. At Sakthi Auto, power consumption will be considerably reduced by moving from furnace melting to cupola melting (where coke and limestone are used to melt raw material).
Some continuous process industries, such as sanitaryware, are coming up with indigenous solutions to reduce power intake. Besides a fuel-efficient kiln, Parryware Roca, part of the Murugappa Group, uses natural light for its Perundurai (about 380 km from Chennai) factory.
“Our power consumption is very low. But with demand for power going up, we have to explore all possible options,” says K. E. Ranganathan, chief executive officer of Parryware Roca, in Chennai.
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