Alstom T&D India links up grid to transmit gas-fired power

Alstom Transmission and Distribution's branch, Alstom T&D, in India has agreed to supply substations, shunt reactors, and circuit breakers worth €37 million (2,558 million rupees) to the Indian state-owned utility Power Grid Corp to ease the grid congestion caused in part by power supply from new-build thermal capacity.

Despite an on-going fuel shortage, the Indian government has been growing thermal capacity during the past five years. India's finance minister Chidambaram Palaniappan criticised that 8,000 MW of power generation capacity in India was "stranded" due to a lack of gas and 12,000 MW capacity by a lack of coal.

Keen to resolve grid bottlenecks, the current government aims to fast-track works to connect the Southern grid to the National grid to create the single largest transmission grid in the world.

India's power minister Jyotiryaditya Scindia urged the industry to take action, suggesting that improvements to power transmission would lessen pressure on grids in Delhi and Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan. He was speaking at the opening of Power Grid Corp's latest 765KV single-circuit Agra-Meerut transmission line and the foundation ceremony of the 6,000 MW HBDC transmission line in Shamshabad, India.

Substations and circuit breakers improve transmission

Alstom T&D India won two contracts worth 1660 INR for the supply, erection, testing and commissioning of 400 kV substation extension. Under separate 400 MINR contract, it will deliver of 765 kV circuit breakers, produced at Alstom's local production factories in Padappai, Tamil Nadu. The French conglomerate manufactures high voltage circuit breakers with capacity of up to 765 kV in India.

The other two contracts include the supply of 765 kV reactors for Power Grid's Padghe, Aurangabad, Bhiwani, and Meerut substations for a value of 270 MINR and 400 kV Reactors for Power Grid's Khandwa Purnia, Gajuwaka Baripada & Bhiwani for a value of 228 MINR. Once operational, the reactors will strengthen the power transmission network in Northern and Western regions of India and mitigate the gap between demand and supply of power, Alstom said.

New capacity needed for 2012-2017

To scale up the availability of power to underpin India's industrialisation procees, the government's Planning Commission has set out series of five year plans. The current 12th five year plant includes the increase of existing inter-state power transmission capacity of 31,850MW to 65,550MW.

India's total installed capacity of thermal power under the previous plan, ending in 2007, reached 12,114MW. The amount of installed thermal capacity is expected to rise to 58,644MW by 2012 and to further increase after 2012.

An update to the gird is necessary to accommodate the newly installed capacity, Alstom said

2013/07/29 13:17:25 Source：《gastopowerjournal》