E-Paper
Wind will save railways a fortune
Windmills will now power the railways’s Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai. The project envisages the erection and commissioning of seven wind turbine generators of 1,500 kilowatts (totalling 10.5 megawatt).
Windmills will now power the railways’s Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai.
The project envisages the erection and commissioning of seven wind turbine generators of 1,500 kilowatts (totalling 10.5 megawatt).
Beginning March, the windmills will start generating all the power that the ICF requires. The factory’s annual energy consumption is 25 million units, while the windmills project is estimated to yield 25.9 million units.
Suzlon Energy, a manufacturer of wind turbine generators, has been awarded the Rs 60 crore contract. Work on the project has commenced.
Chennai-based Ms C-WET, a central institution, is the consultant.
According to windmill data jointly gathered by C-WET and the ICF, the selected sites are among the best in India. The turbines will be set up at Tottapalli, Sanganeri, Radhapuram, Taluk and Tirunelveli.
Sukhbir Singh, member (electrical), Railway Board, said: “The project has been initiated with the aim of reducing carbon emissions, while diminishing environmental ill-effects like global warming.”
Estimates are that the ICF’s annual power bills will come down by Rs.2.5 crore once the windmill project gets into gear. March 2009 has been fixed as the target date of commissioning, said Anil Saxena, railway ministry spokesman.
