Almatti plant exceeds power generation target in 2019-20

The Almatti hydel power plant has generated 631.5 million units (MU) of power in 2019-20 as against its target of 447 MUs.

This happens to be the second highest power generation in the last 12 years. The plant had produced 664 MUs in 2007-08.

Power generation exceeded the target by 184 MUs over the planned 447 MUs owing to the increased inflows into the Lal Bahadur Shastri Sagar (Almatti dam), last season.

R Y Shirali, Superintending Engineer, Karnataka Power Corporation Limited (Almatti project) told DH, "The government has set a target of 466 MUs for the Almatti hydel power plant for 2020-21.

The plant has five units of 55 Megawatt (MW) capacity each and one unit of 15 MW generating capacity. All six will become operational if the reservoir reaches 519 metres and starts pumping/releasing 45,000 cusecs from the said height, R Y Shirali explained.

If all the six units are functional, the Almatti plant can generate 6 MUs daily.

Only one unit with 15 MW capacity was functional for three days in the last one week. Even that too has stopped producing power from Saturday. For now, all six units have stopped generating power.

The units will run to their optimum level in July, if the reservoir continues to receive steady inflows, the Superintending Engineer added.