Chennai: In a major setback to Tangedco and the Tamil Nadu government, the Union ministry for renewable power (MNRE) has cancelled the proposal for a solar park at Kadaladi in Ramanathapuram district. The decision was made at a meeting convened by the MNRE secretary recently to assess the performance of solar parks. The reason for cancellation, sources said, was tardy progress in its implementation.
It was in 2017 that the government announced that a 500 MW solar photovoltaic park would come up at Kadaladi. Former CM J Jayalalithaa had in 2016 announced a 4,000MW thermal power plant at the same site. Problems in obtaining environmental clearance for the thermal power plant is what prompted the state government to shift to the solar park, said sources. When the government announced the setting up of the Kadaladi solar park, it had claimed that the park would be the first ever to be set up by any discom. But even after three years, there was no progress on the project. Even land acquisition is not complete, said officials.
