The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Garbage-based mini-power plant mooted

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Wednesday, Jul 18, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Garbage-based mini-power plant mooted

Correspondent

Official says economic viability study is in progress and a decision will be taken very soon

A few plants are proposed as sugar co-generation units
Subsidy for plants using non-conventional energy sources

Kakinada: Mini-power plants of 4 MW capacity each will shortly come up in Kakinada and Rajahmundry, making use of solid waste collected from the municipalities, according to N. Bangarraju, Regional Director, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Hyderabad.

At a press conference here on Tuesday, he said, already two such power plants were functioning in Vijayawada and Hyderabad and another 17 plants were proposed in various towns.

Twin uses

He said the economic viability study was in progress and a decision would be taken shortly. Pointing out that the power plants would serve the two-fold purpose of solving the piling up garbage problem and also the power shortage problem.

While solid waste would be utilised as fuel for the power plants, the remaining would be disposed of under scientific land-filling from which biogases could be produced. A few more mini-power plants were also planned as sugar co-generation units utilising bagasse.

Mr. Bangarraju said that the government would extend subsidy to all the units based on non-conventional energy sources. He said three sugar co-generation mini-power units would be coming up shortly at three places in the district – Prattipadu, Tuni and Rajanagaram.

He said that the present sugar co-generation plants capacity in the State was 250 MW and the government proposed to increase it to another 300 MW within next three years. He claimed that Andhra Pradesh toped the country in biomass power generation and also in usage of biogases as alternative fuels.

The Godavari Fertilisers and Chemicals unit in Kakinada, he said, was having the country’s largest solar heater water system of 1,10,000 litres capacity, supplying boiler feed water.

G. Satyanarayana, District Manager, said that as many as 18,490 biogas plants and 68,298 smokeless chullahs were installed in East Godavari district till March-end and a majority of them were functioning efficiently.

Painting contest

He said painting competitions would be conducted on renewable energy sources for students at the mandal level from July 20 to 23 and the winners would be allowed to participate at the district level competitions on July 25.The first three winners at the district level would receive prizes from the Chief Minister in Hyderabad.

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