TN to Exceed 20kMW Target of Vision 2023

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu is well on track to achieve the 20,000 MW power capacity target set in the Vision 2023 document. According to Minister for Electricity, Natham R Viswanathan, this is possible through completion of both ongoing and in-pipeline projects.

“The State has been recognised with an award at the national level for its achievements in new and renewable energy and we are comfortably set in exceeding the target of 20,000 MW capacity set for 2023,” said Viswanathan at a Confederation of Indian Industry event held here on Saturday.

“Our solar power initiatives have been especially doing well. Power purchase agreements have been made for 200 MW at Rs 7.01 per unit. By the end of March-April, we may well finalise power purchase agreements to the tune of 1000 MW of solar energy,” he added.

The vision document envisages a Rs 2.85 lakh crore outlay for power alone from the Rs 15 lakh crore total. Current installed capacity is 13427 MW with an added 8400 MW in new and renewable energy generation.

Power was not the only sector under discussion at the conference. State government officials also made presentations as to where respective departments stood in relation to the targets set in the document.

Additional Chief Secretary of Industries CV Sankar defended the state despite the exit of some big names like Nokia and Foxconn by saying that it had done a creditable job in several sectors. “We are first in terms of number of factories, industrial workers, and third in attracting foreign direct investment. Tamil Nadu also has the second highest in Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP),” he pointed out and added that of the 217 mega projects identified in Vision 2023, 64 projects have already been put into various stages of implementation. Principal Secretary for Highways & Minor Ports Rajeev Ranjan stated that innovations in securing funding and raising the effectiveness of Public-Private Partnership projects needed to be upgraded.