Knowing More on Thermal Power Plants in Punjab

Thermal power plants use heat energy, which can be gained from various sources like coal, gas, biomass, or any liquid fuel, to generate electricity. There needs to be a constant supply of resources to run thermal power plants so that there is no disruption in the supply of electricity to various places like industries, factories, hospitals, and houses. Places like Talwandi in Punjab have been a major attraction for constructing huge industries and thermal power plants. No place can run without electricity today, which makes thermal power plants an important aspect of present-day civilization. Most thermal power plants in India use three fuel resources – coal, liquid fuel, and gas. However, the focus of this article will be on the thermal power plants located in Punjab, with Talwandi being the highlight of this article. 

Let us look at the five major thermal power plants in Punjab. 

1. Talwandi Sabo Power Limited

Talwandi Sabo Power Limited (TSPL) is situated in Banawala in the district of Mansa in Punjab. The Talwandi Sabo Power Limited is one of Punjab’s major thermal power plants and is an SPV as the Punjab State Electricity Board incorporated it. The purpose of constructing the Talwandi Power plant was to develop a 1,980 MW thermal power plant to provide a huge amount of energy for that area. Sterlite Energy Limited is the project developer for the plant. The Talwandi Sabo power plant continues to be a major energy provider in the state of Punjab at the present day as it supplies 100 percent energy to the Punjab State Electricity Board. 

2. Goindwal Sahib Thermal Power Plant

Goindwal Sahib Thermal Power Plant is one of the power plants located in Goindwal Sahib in Tarn Taran, Punjab. It was shut down in October 2021 due to the scarcity of resources needed to run the power plant. The supply of coal was running short, and the plant was a coal-based power plant, which resulted in power cuts across the state of Punjab. However, it is again operational today through its two units and continues to supply electricity to the state. 

3. Guru Gobind Singh Plant

With six of its units currently operational, the power plant continues to be one of the major electricity suppliers of the state. Located in the village of Ghanauli near Ropar, Punjab, it is 12 kilometres away from Chandigarh and has a capacity of 1,260 Mega Watts. It is a power plant that gets its energy source from coal. It initially had one unit in 1984, and the next year another unit was added and commissioned, followed by the construction of four more units in the coming years. The power plant gets its water resource from the Nangal Hydel Channel, and the coal is mainly sourced from West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh. 

4. Rajpura Thermal Power Plant

The Rajpura Thermal Power Plant has been sponsored by the Punjab State Power Corporation. It was proposed to be a 1,320 MW plant but was given clearance for 1,400 megawatts instead in 2010 and received an extension in 2014. The power plant construction took place in the Patiala district of Punjab in a village called Nalash. It has been under criticism ever since its construction on land stretching over a thousand acres and was accused of buying the land at the expense of the villagers’ livelihood. The villagers accused the government of buying the land at a minimal rate from the villagers by promising to provide employment, which did not happen for most of the villagers. Several banks provided loans to the Rajpura Thermal Power Plant, but no proposed developments have occurred till 2022. 

5. Nabha Power Limited

Nabha Power Limited has been a major supplier of electricity to the state of Punjab, which was built with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries of Japan, considered to be a critical technology. It has been under contract with Punjab State Power Corporation Limited for twenty-five years under the PPA agreement for its entire power generation. It is also the first power plant and first development project owned and operated by L&T. The Nabha Power Limited is situated in Rajpura and is the first ‘Made in India’ supercritical power plant operational and commissioned in India. Nabha Power Limited is among the highest power supplying plants in its state. 

Conclusion

Thermal power plants play an important role in the advancement of humankind and are directly or indirectly critical to technological advancement. Thermal power plants use heat energy from various resources to produce electricity to power every electrical and electronic machinery and device. Among India’s major thermal power plants, many are located in Punjab due to the geographical relief and convenience of carrying and shifting all the necessary supplies and resources to the power plants. Places like Talwandi, Rajpura, and Ropar are some of the major sites suitable for power plants.