(Draft) Comparison of Power Plants Cost of Electricity (Rs.

/Unit)
Coal 2.0 Nuclear 7.0 (Initial)* Hydal 1.5 50-60 RLNG 7.0 >50 (CCPP)

Efficiency (%)
33-35 35-37 *To be confirmed

Environment & Safety Gas/RLNG Power Station

Advantages
The health effects attributable to NOx ,the Principal pollutant emitted from a natural gas plant are negligible. Natural gas is a clean-burning fuel The land requirement per mega watt of installed capacity for coal is 260 m2 (0.26 ha) The water requirement for a natural gas plant is about 3.0 l/kwhr (0.003 m3/kwh) which is very less than any other power plants. NOx generation will be very less because of Dry Low Nox burner State of art technology for pollution abatement will be used. Higher efficiency (>50%) We can transport oil and gas in pipes and by using tankers or ships

Disadvantages:
High cost of power Abundantly not available in our country, hence to be imported

Environment & Safety Coal Power Station

Advantages
Electricity produced from coal is reliable Coal is one of the most abundant sources of energy, more so than oil and natural gas, But not in Kerala Coal based power is not dependent on weather Coal is a relatively cheap energy source.

Disadvantages:
Air pollution: Burning coal causes smog, soot, acid rain, global warming, and toxic air emissions. People living within 5 km radius of coal based power plant suffer from respiratory ailments. The high amount of carbon dioxide emission (0.9-0.95 kg/kwh) from thermal power plants contribute to global warming leading to climate change. The water requirement for a coal-based power plant is about 5-180 l/kwhr (0.0050.18 m3/kwh ) Wastes generated: Ash, sludge, toxic chemicals, and waste heat create more environmental problems. Water slurry is used to take the ash from the power plant to the ash pond for disposal. Water slowly seeps into the ground while carrying with it the ash leachate Due to this the ground water gets polluted and may become unsuitable for domestic use The noise levels is more in the coal based thermal power than in the natural gas based or the hydroelectric plant. Fuel : Mining, transporting, and storing coal levels mountains and pollutes the land, water, and air. The land requirement per mega watt of installed capacity for coal is 100-4700 m2 (0.1-4.7 ha) Resettlement and Rehabilitation (R&R) is 1.8 to 4.5 persons per MW of installed capacity Requires extensive transportation system

Environment & Safety Nuclear Power Station

Advantages
A clean way to produce energy as it does not result in the emission of any of the poisonous gases like carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide or nitrogen dioxide. One of the main benefits of nuclear power is that it is an extremely reliable source of power because most nuclear reactors have a life cycle of 40 years which can be easily extended further for 20 more years. Technology is readily available It is possible to generate a high amount of electrical energy in one single plant

Disadvantages:
Nuclear plants that rely upon water for once-through cooling systems require twoand-a-half times as much water as fossil fuel plants The amount of solid wastes generated at nuclear plants is relatively small, these radioactive wastes pose health risks that exceed that of any other source of electricity The impact on water resources, aquatic habitats, and fish are therefore more significant with nuclear power plants than any other power generation technology A major failure in a nuclear power plant's cooling systems can create a nuclear meltdown, where fuel rods melt within a matter of seconds. The heat from the uncontrolled reaction can melt everything it comes into contact with. Catastrophic accidents could injure or kill thousands of people. Radioactive contamination hazards to mine workers and nearby populations No source of uranium in Kerala The waste from nuclear energy is extremely dangerous and it has to be carefully looked after for several thousand years Requires larger capital cost because of emergency, containment, radioactive waste and storage systems

Environment & Safety Hydal Power Station

Advantages
No fuel required: One of the major advantages of the hydroelectric power plants is that they dont require any fuel for producing power. Cost of electricity is constant: Since no fuel is required for the hydroelectric power plants, the cost of electricity produced by them is constant Long life: The life of hydroelectric power plants is longer than the life of thermal power plants. There are some hydroelectric power plants that were built more than 50-100 years ago and are still running. No air-pollution is created: Since the hydroelectric power plants dont burn any fuel no pollution is caused by them. It does not emit harmful gases and particulate matter, thus keeps the surrounding atmosphere clean and healthy for living. Cost of generation of electricity: For the working of hydroelectric power plant very few people are required since most of the operations are automated, thus operating costs of hydroelectric power plants are low. Further, as the hydroelectric power plants become older, the cost of generation of electricity from it becomes cheaper since initial capital cost invested in the plant is recovered over the long period of operations Can easily work during high peak daily loads: The daily demand of power is not constant throughout the day. The peak power occurs at night. It is very difficult to start and stop the thermal and nuclear power plants on daily basis. The hydroelectric power plants can be easily started and stopped without consuming much time. Water can be collected in the dam throughout the day and this can be used to generate electricity during peak periods. Another of its advantages is that hydroelectric is a renewable form of energy, like wind and solar; it does not rely upon finite resources like natural gas or coal to generate power

Disadvantages:
Dams are extremely expensive to build and must be built to a very high standard. The high cost of dam construction means that they must operate for many decades to become profitable. The flooding of large areas of land means that the natural environment is destroyed. People living in villages and towns that are in the valley to be flooded, must move out. This means that they lose their farms and businesses. The building of large dams can cause serious geological damage. Building a large dam alters the natural water table level. Large number of people will be affected Wild life in the forest will be affected.