The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved $451m loan to improve the power connectivity in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
The funding will be used to improve the power connectivity between the southern and northern parts of the Chennai-Kanyakumari Industrial Corridor (CKIC) in Tamil Nadu.
ADB South Asia principal energy specialist Pradeep Perera said: “The ADB project will allow more power, including renewable energy, to be transferred from new generation facilities in the south CKIC to the north, where it is most in demand.
“This will help promote economic development by delivering a more reliable and competitive power supply for industry and services in the state, which will in turn spur jobs and improve livelihoods.”
The state government aims to develop the Chennai-Tiruchirappalli area as a manufacturing centre while developing the Madurai-Thoothukudi in the south into a renewable energy-based power generation centre because of the availability of wind and solar resources.
Under the project, a 765kV transmission link will be established to transfer the 9,000MW of extra capacity from Virudhunagar to Coimbatore, which is a major industrial centre, and Chennai.
Expected to be completed by the end of 2024, the project includes the construction of a 400kV network to collect the power generated at renewable and thermal power plants in Thoothukudi district and transmit it to Virudhunagar.
The project will also improve the operational capacity of Tamil Nadu Transmission Corporation (TANTRANSCO), the state-owned company that is responsible for electric power transmission system.
The programme for TANTRANSCO includes supporting a financial restructuring plan to provide better facilities and work environment for women workers, and improve its monitoring capacity for social and environmental impacts of power transmission projects.
ADB has approved a complementary technical assistance funding of $650,000 under its Technical Assistance Special Fund to help the capacity building work.
The total cost of the project is $653.5m, of which the government will provide $202.5m.
