CONSTRUCTION OF 500 KV GRID STATION AND

ALLIED TRANSMISSION LINE AT SHIKARPUR

Analysis of Alternatives

CHAPTER 10
ANALYSIS OF PROJECT ALTERNATIVES
10.1

GENERAL
In general the project alternatives are considered in terms of available project
sites, current technologies, design variations, operational situation, capital &
recurrent costs, environmental & social issues and their potential impacts.
The without project situation is also taken into account in the analysis of
project alternatives. Alternatives regarding the alignment of the transmission
line and location of the proposed grid station are given deep analysis. These
criteria have to be met in tandem and not in isolation, since transmission lines
must connect with the new grid station for purposes of onward connectivity
with dispersal lines.
The objective of the project is to disperse electricity generated at various
power generation sources and transmission not only to power-deficient parts
of the region but also for further connectivity with the national grid. In this
chapter feasible alternatives for the grid station and the T/L are discussed.

10.2

ALTERNATIVES FOR GRID STATION

Alternatives for grid station in view of the above criteria and available
technology & piece of land are given in the following paragraphs:

10.2.1 Administrative Alternatives

Alternative I - Without Project Situation

o Presently the localities are experiencing unabated electricity failures
and shutdowns. If this existing 220kv grid station is not upgraded in
the proposed area the local people will continue to suffer from
disturbances of commercial, businesses and economic growth.
o In the absence of the grid station the electricity supply in the area of
influence will remain disturbed causing immense losses to existing
physical, biological and socio-economic environments.

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CONSTRUCTION OF 500 KV GRID STATION AND

ALLIED TRANSMISSION LINE AT SHIKARPUR

Analysis of Alternatives

Alternative - II Construction of Grid Station on Available Land

The site had been selected in 132/220KV existing grid stations with 62
acres land. Accordingly the land measuring 50 acres is clearly available
for construction & upgradation to 500KV grid station. This alternative is
recommended, as no land acquisition is required.

Alternative - III Construction of Grid Station on Some other Piece of Land

In this alternative, fresh effort will have to be started for selection of the
new site. This would warrant a change in route of T/L. The previous
investments of time and money will go waste. The commencements of
the project will be delayed and the locals will continue to face electric
failures in future. In nutshell this alternative is not at all feasible.

10.2.2 Technical Alternatives

With the advancement of technologies in the world the quality and types of
various equipment, machinery, materials, and processes used for the grid
station and T/L keep improving. Various technical options with the respective
merits and demerits have been highlighted, as discussed below.

Types of Grid Station

There are two types of grid stations, that is, Gas Insulated Sub-Station
(GIS) and Air Insulated Sub-Station (AIS).

Characteristics of GIS Grid Stations

o Environmental Impacts
GIS grid stations are not affected by external environmental factors.
o

Space Saving
GIS bays are compact. These help in space saving up to 80%.

o Low Maintenance Cost

GIS grid stations are highly reliable. Therefore, these need minimum
maintenance.
o Long Life
The operation life of GIS stations is 40 to 50 years as compared to 25
to 30 years of AIS grid stations.
o Low Civil Works Cost

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CONSTRUCTION OF 500 KV GRID STATION AND

ALLIED TRANSMISSION LINE AT SHIKARPUR

Analysis of Alternatives

Due to compact design and light weight there is a substantial saving in

the cost of civil works.
o Personnel Safety
GIS grid station causes no risk of injury to operating personnel.
o Short Circuiting by Wildlife
Fully encapsulated enclosures reduce risk of outages caused by
lizards and vandalism.
o Reliability
Factory assembled and tested units offer unbeatable performance in
terms of reliability and continuity of power supply.
10.3

Characteristics of AIS Grid Stations

o It can be extended easily
o It is a very cheaper option vis--vis GIS grid station to up grade with
existing 220 kv grid station.
o Alteration / modification of various components is easier than GIS grid
station. As already AIS

for 220 KV grid station under operation at

Shikarpur.

In view of the available piece of land for grid station construction AIS
technology is recommended for this project, being cost effective.

10.3.1 Alternatives for T/L

Choice of a route depends on three factors i.e., distance; avoiding existing
settlements bypassing environmentally sensitive areas / protected areas.
10.3.2 Overhead T/L
This alternative includes construction of traditional overhead T/L. Its
characteristics are:

Technically, this option is simple as compared to underground cable

system as trained manpower is available.

Economically construction and operation & maintenance costs of

overhead T/L are lower.

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CONSTRUCTION OF 500 KV GRID STATION AND

ALLIED TRANSMISSION LINE AT SHIKARPUR

Analysis of Alternatives

Socially, this system is problem free as it poses no threat to existing

utilities (water supply, telephone lines, gas lines etc) as no large scale
digging / excavation is involved.

This system is not very safe / public friendly as the poles and conductors
are susceptible to fall during bad weather conditions (high wind speed and
heavy rains) may cause damage to life and property.

The overhead T/L represents a better technical option than the

underground counterpart under the current technical and socio-economic
conditions.
Overhead lines are simple and easy to implement and maintenance costs
are lower, less land is affected and there is no threat to subterranean
infrastructure. Overhead lines are less safe since poles, towers and
conductors can be damaged and can cause threats to life and property in
case

of

bad

weather,

storms,

earthquakes,

unless

continuous

maintenance and inspections are carried out. As regards selection of

towers or poles, even though towers occupy more space and poles leave
a smaller footprint, towers are economical especially when there is no
space constraint.
10.3.3 Underground Cable

The option includes construction of underground cable system instead of

over-head T/L.

Technically, its maintenance is costly and difficult as no trained manpower

to undertake the system fault is available with the NTDC.

Disadvantages of underground power cables are as under:

Underground cables cost almost thrice as much, since cost of burying cables
at transmission voltages is many times greater than overhead lines, and the
life-cycle cost of an underground power cable is two to four times the cost of
an overhead power line. This is mainly due to the limit of the physical
properties of the insulation placed during installation, keeping the runs to
hundreds of meters between splices, which are most commonly placed in
manholes or splice-boxes for repairs;

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CONSTRUCTION OF 500 KV GRID STATION AND

ALLIED TRANSMISSION LINE AT SHIKARPUR

Analysis of Alternatives

Underground cables require continuous conduits, from start to finish, and

thus a large construction project is involved;
These are not cost-effective and difficult in relation to maintenance. Whereas
finding and repairing overhead wire breaks can be accomplished in hours,
underground repairs can take days or weeks.
Operations are more difficult since the high reactive power of underground
cables produces large charging currents and makes voltage control more
difficult.
Economically, this is costlier as compared with the overhead option. Roughly,
it costs 3 times more the overhead option, as expressed by NTDC engineers.
The adoption of this option will cause greater number of social problems as
compared with the over head option, in terms of threat to the existing utilities
during the digging/excavation process, traffic disturbance, environmental
degradation due to dust and smoke, loss of access or difficult access of the
residents to their residences and farms during construction.
10.3.4 Comparison between Towers and Poles

Towers
The conventional towers occupy more space. These are recommended for
the present project in rural localities.

Poles
These have small footprint. These are especially suitable for congested
urban localities but four times more costly comparing with conventional
towers.

10.3.5 Alternatives for T/L Routes

There are three guiding principles for selection of the most suitable T/L
route. Firstly, the route should be the shortest. Secondly, it should avoid
existing settlements as far as possible. Thirdly it should not pass through
the environmentally sensitive localities / reserved parks.

The proposed route is recommended since it is environment friendly as

impacts are insignificant and case be properly addressed by talking
proposed mitigation measures.

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