According to Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) management, two under-construction bus terminals in Chennai – Kilambakkam and Kuthambakkam – would be the city’s first solar power facilities generating renewable energy. The solar electricity rendered by these terminals will also be utilized to charge e-vehicles as well.
The two bus terminals will be finished by the end of 2022. The Kilambakkam terminus, spanning 60 acres of land, will be able to generate 19,200 units of electricity per day, which will aid buses serving Tamil Nadu’s southern districts.
The Kuthambakkam terminal will generate 10,400 units of electricity per day, and plans are in the works to put up recharge stations for e-buses and e-cars to utilize the spare electricity generated.
According to CMDA sources, if all renewable energy is used for charging vehicles, 40 buses or 800 automobiles can be recharged at Kilambakkam.
The CMDA is also negotiating a solar power-sharing agreement with the Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Company Ltd (TANGEDCO). As per CMDA technical experts, the solar electricity generated would not be stored in batteries, since doing so would result in a 20% energy loss.
The generated solar electricity will be transmitted to the TANGEDCO system for distribution in the surrounding communities, and the TANGEDCO will provide power for 19 hours a day and during rainstorms when solar power cannot be used.
In accordance with CDMA sources, the bus terminuses at Kilambakkam and Kuthambakkam would be the first in Chennai to attain net-zero for carbon emissions in government establishments.
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