Moolamattom power plant to be shut down for a month for maintenance

Thodupuzha: Power generation from the Idukki Hydroelectric Project will be completely or partially halted for about a month, according to reports.

Three of the six generators at the Moolamattom power house will be shut down as part of carrying out maintenance starting Tuesday.

Power generation is to be suspended from November 11 to December 10 in order to replace the worn-out seals of the main inlet valve supplying water to the fifth and sixth generators of the Idukki power house, according to reports. The seals have worn out due to aging.

The KSEB plans to source electricity from external suppliers to compensate for the power shortage during this period.

From July to December every year one generator is taken offline each month for maintenance.

But this time three generators are to be simultaneously shut down for maintenance after having detected the worn-out seals.

The operation of the fourth generator will also be shut down as the fourth, fifth, and sixth generators are connected to the second penstock pipe carrying water from the dam to the powerhouse.

Since the total power generation at the Idukki project is 780 megawatts, halting of three generators will drop daily power output to 390 megawatts.

It is reported that maintenance work will lead to a shortfall of around 24 crore units of electricity during this period.