To be acquired at Naripaiyur and two nearby villages in Kadaladi block
The 500 MW solar power plant of Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO), announced by Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami in the assembly on Thursday, would be set up in 2,200 acres at Naripaiyur and two nearby villages in Kadaladi block.
TANGEDCO had identified about 2,200 acres of land in the coastal villages of Naripaiyur, Kannirajapuram and S Tharaikudi as alternative site to the proposed 4,000 MW (5×800) mega thermal power plant, and it would be used for setting up the solar power plant, official sources said here.
Almost the entire portion of the area in the villages was patta lands and land acquisition would begin after completing initial formalities, the sources said. As the lands were fallow, infested with karuvelam trees (prosophis juliflora), the acquisition would not be a hurdle.
The villages were located three km from the coast and, hence, the Remote Sensing Department of Anna University had been asked to prepare Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) mapping after studying the salt content of the soil and determine high and low tide levels, the sources said.
Based on the mapping, the Detailed Project Report (DPR) would be prepared. An agency to prepare the DPR was being shortlisted. “The Rs. 2,350 crore project has been put on fast track and things will move fast and the plant will be established well ahead of the proposed thermal power station in the same block,” the sources told The Hindu .
The Rs. 24,000 crore 4,000 MW thermal power plant announced by former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in September 2016 would come up in 2,500 acres in Kondunallanpatti, Karisalkulam, Kokkarasankottai and DM Kottai, also in Kadaladi block.
The project suffered a setback after the expert appraisal committee of the Ministry of Environment and Forests said TANGEDCO could not disturb the biosphere reserve in the Gulf of Mannar region by drawing or letting water into the sea.
IIT-Madras then suggested that the Corporation establish 2×660 MW units, using air cooled condensers technology by digging bore wells to draw the minimum required water to run the plants. “We have asked them to explore whether it would be possible to establish 5×800 MW units using the same technology,” the sources said.
Source: thehindu
