Hydropower plants in Himachal resume generation

Shimla, Aug 11 : Himachal Pradesh's three mega hydropower projects, which remained closed for four days owing to abnormal rise in silt in the Satluj river, resumed generation on Saturday, an official said.

The closure of the projects had disrupted power supply to the northern states, including Delhi.

The run-of-the-river plants that resumed generation were 1,500 MW Nathpa Jhakri plant, 412 MW Rampur Hydro Electric Project and 1,000 MW Karcham-Wangtoo Project.

State-run Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd (SJVNL) operates Nathpa Jhakri and Rampur projects, while Himachal Baspa Power Company, an arm of the JSW Group, operates Karcham-Wangtoo project.

Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Chief Engineer (System Operations) Suneel Grover told IANS that the project resumed generation as the silt level in the river came down.

The closure of the hydro plants has led to a power crisis in the northern region.

The northern power grid came under strain as the states procuring power from the projects were forced to overdraw from the grid.

The projects supply power mainly to Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

--IANS

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Source: IANS