Udupi: UPCL Goes Commercial – Coastal Districts Hope for Brighter Days
Pics by Chethan Padubidri
Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi (SP)
Udupi, Jun 4: The thermal power plant of Udupi Power Corporation (UPCL) located at Nandikoor near Padubidri in the district began commercial production on Thursday June 3 morning. The project had faced protests and got mired in controversies right from the days Cogentrix planned to set up power generating unit here a few decades ago. The hopes of the citizens of the twin-districts, harassed by innumerable power cuts during the days as well as nights since the last some weeks, have now been rekindled and they expect that henceforth, they will have lesser power cuts.
On the first day, 55 mw of power was generated. The company expects to increase the power generation with each passing day, to reach its installed capacity of 600 mw by the end of the month, said Kishore Alva, general manager (corporate affairs) of the company. The second unit, also with a capacity to generate 600 mw of power, is expected to begin generation within a few months.
State Chief Minister, B S Yeddyurappa, announced at the Global Investors Meet that began at Bangalore on Thursday that UPCL has started supplying power to the state grid.