Naidu unveils Rs 22,000 crore green energy corridor plan

Vijayawada: Chief minister Chandrababu Naidu has unveiled a Rs 22,000 crore green energy corridor plan aimed at integrating 18 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy into Andhra Pradesh’s power grid. He described it as a crucial step towards transforming the state into a global hub for green energy, digital infrastructure, and future industries.Reviewing the energy sector on Friday, Naidu directed officials to rapidly strengthen transmission infrastructure in line with the state govt’s long-term target of generating 160 GW of green energy. Naidu said the green energy corridor would become the backbone for supplying reliable power to upcoming data centres and emerging industries in the state, besides significantly boosting investments across sectors. He stressed that future-ready infrastructure was essential to meet rising industrial and technological power demands. Naidu further directed officials to speed up the establishment of EV charging infrastructure across the state. Naidu observed that increased use of solar energy in govt institutions would substantially reduce the electricity burden on the state and directed officials to expedite implementation.Special chief secretary (energy) Vijayanand explained that proposals have been prepared to connect nearly 18 GW of renewable energy to the main grid, including 11 GW of solar power and around 7 GW from pumped storage projects under the green energy corridor phase III. To support the integration, the govt plans to construct 2,261 km of transmission lines and establish five major pooling stations with a combined capacity of 9,500 MW. The pooling stations are proposed at Mudigubba, Talupula, Ramayapatnam, Porumamilla and Koppaka.The energy department explained that peak electricity demand in the state between June and Nov is expected to reach 12,226 MW, while daily demand may range between 226 million and 261 million units. The state recorded peak demand of 15,016 MW on May 21, while electricity consumption till May 27 stood at 7,060 million units. Consumption during April-May increased by 14.48% to 16.77% compared to the corresponding period last year. Energy minister Gottipati Ravi Kumar, chief secretary G Sai Prasad and senior officials from AP Transco, Genco and Discoms participated in the review meeting.GFX*In a major technological initiative, Andhra Pradesh is developing the country’s first Digital Twin Grid for power supply management.*‘Pravah’, an organisation associated with Stanford University and an Artificial Intelligence Lab, is supporting AP* The project aims to reduce technical power losses in the APEPDCL region through AI-driven systems. *A delegation from the World Economic Forum also met the chief minister to discuss the implementation of the country’s first Thematic Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR) being established in Andhra Pradesh. *The centre will focus on studies related to green energy, energy transition and cyber resilience. *Eensure the C4IR functions with a results-oriented approach, and said AP’s progress should become a model worthy of presentation at the next Davos summit: Chandrababu Naidu