New power allotment formula for Taml Nadu likely

Chennai: Union Power Minister Piyush Goyal warned states which oppose the setting up nuclear plants that they will not be able to avail nuclear energy from other states.

The Union Minister who visited the city on Monday and held a meeting with Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami and State Power Minister P. Thangamani agreed to positively consider TN's demands. “We are drawing up a new power allotment formula under which maximum power from Kudankulam 3 and 4 units will be for TN,” he said on emerging out of the meeting.

This follows a plea by the Edappadi Palaniswami Government that the entire 2,000 MW power to be generated from the third and fourth nuclear power plants coming up in Kudankulam in Tirunelveli district should be allotted to TN.

“It is a genuine request and I will do my best to give more power to Tamil Nadu,” Mr Goyal told reporters at the Secretariat here.

“The Central government has continuously supported Tamil Nadu and we are happy with the cooperation we got,” he said in reply to a question. The Centre would spend Rs 12,000 crore in the next three years to further improve energy efficiency.

No nuke power for states opposing nuclear plants

Mr Piyush Goyal said states opposing or stalling the establishment of nuclear power projects in their land wouldn't be able to avail nuclear energy from other States.

"Any state which does not allow a nuclear plant… should not be eligible for the benefits of nuclear power from another state," he warned.

On his meeting with the CM at the Secretariat, he said “in the meeting, I expressed my gratitude to the people of Tamil Nadu and to the leadership for supporting Ram Nath Kovind as the presidential candidate.”

He also assured the Central government support for the Cheyyur Ultra Mega Power Plant (UMPP) and would allot a coal block to the plant.

On the opposition's allegation of the government's decision to privatise Kamarajar port, he said, “there is no move to privatise any port in the country.”

The Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY), the Union Minister said, has helped Tamil Nadu become a power surplus state as the rest of the country. “I'm sure in the days to come Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO) will also start making profits and will be able to serve the people of Tamil Nadu with affordable, adequate, uninterrupted and clean power,” he said and added that after joining UDAY scheme, Tamil Nadu's losses of power sector were reduced to '3,700 crore from '14,000 crore in the last three years.

The state would make substantial savings because of GST. "I have also shared with the TN government about the huge savings Tamil Nadu is going to get, thanks to GST and the reduction of taxes by which NLC will reduce the cost by Rs 508 crore.

For Tamil Nadu, other companies which provide power, cost will come down. And a saving will be about Rs 1,000 crore for Tamil Nadu," he added.