MANUFACTURING
TURBINE BLADES INDIGENOUSLY
New Delhi, 23 September 2006
NEW DELHI, September 24 (INFA): A facility to
manufacture wind turbine blades is being set up by a Chennai-based private
sector company. It is hoping to start
production in about six months. The company has estimated that the facility
would cost about Rs.35 lakh.
A Denmark
company has provided the technology for the facility, which is to be used for
the first time outside Europe.
The facility will manufacture 350 sets of blades in the
first year and 700 in the second. The
company plans to invest about Rs.65 crore in the second phase of the facility
to produce higher capacity turbines.
Local manufacture of the blades would cut costs by 10 to 15
per cent and would also lead to savings in terms of time and transportation.
Lead-time of procuring blades would be reduced from 120 days
to 40 days. Furthermore, a turbine has been set up to provide captive power to
run the facility. This will be
integrated with other renewable energy devices.
Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh, which is facing acute power
shortage is seriously looking at wind energy to bridge the ever widening gap
between demand and supply.
The Non-Conventional Energy Development Agency (NEDA)
recently authorized a Chennai-based agency to carry out wind velocity survey in
five districts of the State.
The survey which particularly focuses on the high wind
velocity districts of Lalitpur, Mirzapur, Mathura,
Agra and Jhansi,
is expected to be completed soon. The additional power would be produced in the
State through a wind-solar hybrid project.
According to NEDA officials, a proposal has been sent to the
Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources (MNES), Government of India, for
generating 1200 to 1500 MW power from wind turbines.---INFA
ANDHRA TOPS IN
TOURIST ARRIVALS
HYDERABAD, September 24 (INFA): Andhra
Pradesh has emerged number one among the States of the Union
in terms of tourist arrivals from within the country.
During 2005, as many as 9.32 crore domestic tourists set
foot in the State---higher than in Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, which have the
largest domestic tourism circuit in India.
The entire credit, however, goes not to its babus, but the
Lord of the seven hills, Tirupati.
A whopping 3.06 crore of the 9.32 crore tourists were
destined for Chittoor district that houses Lord Venkateswara’s shrine. ---INFA
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