Three months after the launch of the Chennai Metro Rail service between Koyambedu and Alandur, officials are now looking at the possibility of tapping solar energy.
According to officials of the Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL), they are planning to install solar power panels either in the shed or the depot in Koyambedu. “We are yet to take a call on this. We estimate it would generate about 1000 kW power generation,” says an official.
The depot at Koyambedu, built at a cost of Rs. 198 crore, sprawls over 26 hectares.
It houses maintenance workshops, stabling lines, test tracks, washing plants and an Operational Control Centre (OCC) from where the trains can be monitored and controlled. Currently, there are two main sub-stations and two auxiliary stations catering to Chennai Metro Rail, the official says.
The trains are equipped with regenerative braking that will facilitate recovery of 30-35 per cent of the energy.
Chennai Metro Rail is following in the footsteps of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, which has established solar power facilities with a generation capacity of 2.8 MWp.
Recently, it installed a 100 kWp solar power plant at a parking lot in one of the metro stations and plans to install solar power panels on foot overbridges at a few Metro stations.
Published - October 08, 2015 05:03 am IST
