The State government has given the go-ahead for deploying five hydrokinetic turbines in the Left Bank canal of the Moolathara regulator in Palakkad district.
The project is part of an initiative of the Energy Management Centre, Kerala (EMC), which is the State-designated agency for the enforcement of the Energy Conservation Act, for trying out hydrokinetic energy turbines in irrigation channels.
The Water Resources department, which manages the Moolathara regulator, has approved the proposal on condition that the turbines and allied infrastructure do not hinder water flow.
For implementing the 25 kilowatt project, the EMC had issued a work order to Maclec Technical Project Laboratory. The EMC also has plans to replicate hydrokinetic energy projects in a phased manner in other potential sites in the State.
Hydrokinetic power projects produce electricity by directly utilising the kinetic energy of flowing water. This is in contrast to hydropower projects that rely on the potential energy of water stored in dams.
In June 2021, the Power department gave the go-ahead to EMC for installing hydrokinetic turbines in irrigation channels and the tailrace schemes of hydropower projects managed by the KSEB.
The hydrokinetic power project is one of a number of initiatives meant to tap small hydro potential in Kerala. A Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) estimate pegs Kerala’s potential in this area at 650 MW. The draft Kerala Small Hydro Policy 2022, published in January this year, envisages increasing small hydropower capacity from the present 260 MW to 500 MW in eight years’ time.
