Kerala CM to inaugurate CIAL's hydro power project at Kozhikode

The operator of Cochin International Airport has constructed a weir dam across Iruvazhinji River and hydro-mechanical and electro-mechanical systems at Arippara, near Kodencheri in Kozhikode district. The project was completed in September and trial run started in October.

Kochi:The Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL), which is world's first fully solar-powered airport, has now ventured into hydropower production and plans to provide power from its plant at Arippara near Kozhikode to the KSEB from November first week.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will inaugurate the plant which estimates an annual power generation of 14 million unit, on November 6, CIAL authorities said on Sunday.

CIAL said the 4.5 MWp run off the river small hydro project (SHP) was awarded to it by the state Power Department as per the Kerala Small Hydro power policy under Built-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) for a lease period of 30 years.

CIAL has constructed a weir dam across Iruvazhinji River and hydro-mechanical and electro-mechanical systems at Arippara, near Kodencheri in Kozhikode district. The project was completed in September and trial run started in October.

"When the country is deliberating on power crisis, it is the leadership and guidance of the Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, as the Chairman of CIAL which turned out to be decisive to speed up the project implementation. We are sure that, this will impart further momentum to set up such hydro projects across the state which has 44 rivers and numerous streams," S Suhas, the Managing Director of CIAL said in a release.

CIAL purchased five acres of land from 32 residents and the total project cost is Rs 52 crore.

The powerhouse will generate around 1.08 lakhs unit of power a day during peak flow days and is estimated that the plant could be operational in full capacity for 130 days in a year. Annual power generation is estimated at 14 million units, CIAL said.

Suhas said the potential of renewable energy is immense and if wit the help of technological imagination, the government can set up joint ventures to harness the light of the Sun, the power of the wind and the strength of rushing streams and be more productive and efficient in the ways of energy consumption.

Being a run of the river project, CIAL SHP works on limited storage of water causing no adverse effect on the environment, it said.

The scheme envisages the construction of an overflow type weir across the river, which diverts the water to an intake pool from where the intake structure and connected water conductor system (WCS) start.

"A surge tank was constructed to moderate the water flow during load acceptance and load rejection time. A penstock feeds two machines each of 2.25 MW capacity. A powerhouse, with horizontal turbines, is installed at the right bank of the river with an installed capacity of 4.5MW," it said.

The site lies in Nellipoyil Village near Kodencheri in Kozhikode district at a distance of 45 km from Kozhikode City.

PTI