Labour shortage, attrition delay Udangudi power project
THOOTHUKUDI: The commissioning of the Udangudi supercritical thermal power plant (TPP), being constructed by Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), may be further delayed due to labour shortage and attrition.
The plant's operation, expected to start power generation by May this year, may be delayed till September as nearly 15% of work is pending, sources said. The plant has been designed to produce 1,320 MW of power per day from two units of 660-MW capacity each.
BHEL began work on the Udangudi TPP in 2018 and the plan was to commission unit 1 by September 2024 and unit 2 by January 2025. Tangedco chairman and managing director
J Radhakrishnan recently said that power generation would begin by May 2025.
BHEL officials said over 6,000 contract workers are required for the construction of the two units, but only 4,300 workers could be mobilised and 98% of them are migrant workers.
Of the 4,300 workers, over one-third are skilled workers like machine operators, welders, riggers, fitters and technicians holding boiler licence. Unskilled workers are largely involved in menial and civil work, an official said.
Expressing concern over labour shortage, a senior Tangedco official said migrant workers leave for their native places after working barely for two or three months, while local workers do not prefer contract jobs.
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