Indian power company Tata Power this month celebrated the 100th anniversary of its hydroelectric power plant in Bhivpuri, Maharashtra.
The plant, one of the oldest in India, produces around 300 MUs of electricity annually. Tata Power started building the Bhivpuri Powerhouse in 1916 in Raigad district of Maharashtra near Mumbai. The project was commissioned in 1922, with installed capacity of 48MW, which was subsequently upgraded to 75 MW including a 72MW new powerhouse, with three units of 24MW. It also includes a 3MW tailrace powerhouse comprising two units of 1. MW each. The plant now transmits power over 110 kV transmission lines to industries and licensees in the Mumbai metropolis.
"It's a proud moment for all of us at Tata Power to mark the centenary celebration of Bhivpuri Hydro Power Station,” said Dr. Praveer Sinha, CEO&MD, Tata Power. “We are committed to providing clean energy through this plant and on this occasion reaffirm our commitment to achieve clean and green energy capacity of 80% by 2030; thus contributing towards India's clean energy targets."
The Bhivpuri plant, along with the Khopoli and Bhira, is among the first hydroelectric plants in the region that harnesses the major water resources of the Western Ghats in Maharashtra. Today, these three plants make up Mumbai's 'islanding system', the backup power source that kicks-in in case metropolis' power supply gets impacted.
The water released from Bhivpuri plant along with the Khopoli and Bhira hydel plants meets the Ulhas, Patalganga and Kundalika rivers in the Konkan region. This water has enabled rapid industrialization, urbanization, irrigation development, commercial trades, etc. in the downstream areas of Karjat, Ambernath, Ulhasnagar, Thane, Badlapur, Mira-Bhayander, Vasai, etc.
For the past 100 years, Tata Power has been involved in a variety of economic and community development projects around the Bhivpuri Hydro plant. This includes the establishment of Dhaaga centers to support the livelihood of under-privileged community women, training to rural women for producing herbal healthcare products, education excellence schemes for teachers and students to improve their academic performance, training teachers on biodiversity and environment, water and renewable energy schemes. It has also undertaken initiatives to create employment and run various healthcare programmes to provide primary healthcare to remote villages.
