Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation has cut unscheduled power cuts by two hours following a sudden rise in wind energy generation in the past couple of days. Corporation officials, however, are sceptical the generation will last.
The generation from wind shot up beyond 2,500 MW Thursday evening from 162 MW Wednesday. Following this, managers relaxed load shedding in districts, except Chennai, facing over eight hours of power cuts bringing smiles to the faces of suffering residents.
About 1,000 MW of wind energy is wasted in Tamil Nadu due to transmission bottlenecks and obsolete practices. TN, which produces 6,548 MW of wind energy today, accounts for 47 per cent of all installed wind energy capacity in India. With the state reeling under power crisis, it would help if the government acted to remove the blocks that impede the state from producing maximum wind energy,through private participation, said Dr S. Gomathinayagam, executive director, centre for wind energy technology.
He suggests a two-pronged strategy — increasing transmission capacities by upgrading sub-stations that absorb wind energy into the grid, and bringing in laws to bridge the gap between TNEB and private-operated windmill sites.