CHENNAI: Tangedco has reduced 0.49% of its aggregate technical and commercial (AT&C) losses from 14.12% and avoided losses of Rs 560 crore for the financial year 2021-22. The State-owned power utility’s AT&C loss now stands at 13.63%. This was recently announced by the Union Ministry of Power, a senior Tangedco official said.
The official explained that AT&C losses are unavoidable when electricity is transferred from the generation point, but can be reduced by improving distribution and transmission networks such as substations, transformers, and cables. “A total of 47 substations, power cables over 7,100 km, and 24,000 transformers were added to the power utility’s network last financial year,” the official added.
Another official pointed out that under the Central government’s Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme, more substations and transformers are to be set up in the next five years. The power utility’s aim is to reduce the AT&C loss from 14.12% to 11.92% by 2024-25. As of now, work is on to construct 302 substations, and is to be completed in a couple of years.
The official added that Tangedco plans to segregate 1,686 agriculture feeders as a type of transmission line, implement a High Voltage Distribution System (HVDS) in 273 feeders, separate double transformers at 4,500 locations using HVDS.