HT Bureau
GUWAHATI, April 8: New power lines under the Inter State Transmission System (ISTS), being laid in the Nangalbibra in Meghalaya and Bongaigaon district in Assam, will help transmit Energy within the Northeast while also efficiently evacuating generated electricity between the Northeast and rest of India grids. This ISTS corridor is set to aid power exchange between grids allowing stable & affordable power supply in the region. In a move that will place India firmly in the saddle of being energy sufficient and strengthen Assam’s position as a major centre of electricity in the region, the Nangalbibra Bongaigaon transmission line (NBTL) will contribute immensely to the strengthening our power infrastructure. The growing investment in the power generation through Renewable sources like Solar & small hydro, needs to be channelized through an efficient system of ISTS for stable & affordable electricity for the end users. The newly built power lines passing through the two states of the Northeast satiates the Assam State Renewable Energy (RE) policy 2022 which is aimed at creating an ecosystem to propel growth of RE in the state. An initiative of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) the ISTS projects aims to strengthen Assam’s electricity transmission system by constructing new transmission substations, laying new transmission lines like NBTL, upgrading existing substations, transmission lines, and existing ground wires to optical power ground wire (OPGW) and providing technical assistance. To enhance the transmission network in the North-Eastern Region, several other Inter State Transmission projects have been initiated. Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd. (PGCIL) is overseeing two significant Intra State power transmission and distribution schemes. The first is the North Eastern Region Power System Improvement Project (NERPSIP), which aims to strengthen the Intra-State Transmission and Distribution Systems (33kV & above) for six states (Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura, and Nagaland) at an estimated cost of Rs.6,700 crore. The second scheme is the Comprehensive Scheme for Strengthening of Transmission and Distribution System in Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, which is sanctioned at an estimated cost of Rs.9,129.32 crore.
