India’s largest Hydel Power Plants, Nathpa Jhakri and Karcham Wangtoo Hydroelectric Plants have been shutdown owing to high silt levels in River Sutluj adding further to the Power Crisis in North India.
Located in Kinnaur, Himachal Pradesh, the 1,500 MW Nathpa Jhakri power project, and Jaypee Karcham Hydro Corp Ltd’s 1,000 MW Karcham Wangtoo Hydroelectric Project were both closed.
The silt level in the river, on which the Nathpa Jhakri power project is located, was more than the permissible limit, a Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd (SJVNL) official told IANS.
He said the silt level, which rose more than 6,000 ppm (parts per million) Wednesday due to incessant rainfall, came down to 5,000 ppm Thursday. “Still generation is not possible as high silt can damage the plant,” he added.
S.K. Uppal, project general manager of Jaypee Group, said only one turbine of 250 MW has been working. Other three turbines have been shut.
But the company’s 300 MW Baspa Hydropower project, located upstream of the Karcham Wangtoo Hydroelectric Project, is working normally.
The SJVNL, a joint venture between the centre and state government, daily generates about 38 million units, and supplies power to Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.