Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (DMRC)

Project Update

Signalling | Telecommunication | Electrical | Civil

POWER FOR ELECTRIC TRAINS FOR DELHI MRTS

Electric Trains are envisaged to run on the underground corridor from Vishwa Vidyalaya to Central Secretariat and on the surface corridor from Barwala to Nangloi under Delhi Mass Rapid Transit System Project Phase - I. Power supply system for Delhi MRTS is being designed with adequate redundancy to ensure continuous and reliable power for running electric trains in the underground Metro Corridor and on the Surface Corridor. Total Power required for running trains with modern coaches on both the corridors is estimated to be 75 MW by the year 2005. This power will be used for running trains including auxiliary loads such as lifts, escalators, lighting, ventilation and air conditioning etc. In addition 45 MW power would be required to meet the loads for new commercial complexes planned to be built over and around MRTS stations. The power (75 MW) required to operate the trains in the MRTS corridors constitutes about 3% of the total peak hours requirement presently estimated to be 2600 MW for Delhi Area.

Presently DVB, Badarpur Thermal Power Station and Northern Region Electricity Board meet power requirement in Delhi through 3 sources namely internal power generation. Keeping in view the shortages of power in Delhi and to ensure continuous availability of quality power for running trains on the MRTS Corridors, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Ltd, have made arrangements to get 120 MW power from NTPC Thermal Power Station at Oriya stage II by wheeling power through extra high transmission (400kv / 220kv / 66kv) network in Delhi Area. In the event of failure of Northern Grid, power supply to Delhi MRTS stations of Underground Metro Corridor will continue to be fed from the Inder Prastha (IP) Gas Turbine Power Station.

Power for the underground Metro Corridor will be received at 3 receiving stations of MRTS namely ISBT, New Delhi and Patel Chowk. Power at ISBT and New Delhi receiving stations of MRTS will be fed from IP Extension Network at 66 kv through duplicate cable feeders, which in turn is also connected, to the Gas Turbine Power Station of Delhi Vidyut Board. Similarly power at third receiving station namely Patel Chowk will be received at 66 kv through duplicate cable feeders from Park Street Sub station, which in turn is connected to IP Extension. To ensure the highest degree of reliability and all time power availability for the underground Metro Corridor, 3 MRTS Power receiving stations are inter-connected for transfer of power from one to another through Fire Retardant Low Smoke (FRLS) cable feeders. These receiving stations will be remote controlled from Centralized Operation Control Centre through Supervisory Control & Data Acquisition System (SCADA).

In the unlikely event of total power failure due to simultaneous collapse of Northern Grid and IP Gas Turbine Power Station, emergency lighting in the tunnel and at the MRTS stations will be automatically switched on and fed the stand by Generator Sets. In addition, all the trains will also have modern Ni-Cd Batteries to continue to provide lighting and air conditioning even when the train is stopped in event of complete power failure. The ventilation and air conditioning arrangements in the tunnel and the underground stations are being so designed that emergency ventilation arrangements for the stations and tunnel will continue to be maintained from the standby Generator Sets in such exigencies.

For Rail Corridor it has been planned to avail power from NTPC Thermal Power Station at three MRTS receiving stations through 400 kV, 220 kV & 66 kV Extra High Voltage Transmission Network. In the event of failure of one source, power can be fed at 25 KV side throughout the section from the other two sources. However, in the event of complete collapse of NREB grid, arrangements are being planned to transfer power from ISBT receiving sub-station of Metro Corridor to Rail Corridor. Arrangements have been planned to supply power for lifts, escalators and station lighting from the stand by Generator Set provided at each station in the event of complete grid failure. Similarly, the coaches will be equipped with modern Ni-cd batteries to provide lighting and air conditioning when trains come to a halt due to any reason.

To ensure continuous availability of quality power for running MRTS trains, utmost efforts are being made to plan and design the power supply system with degree of reliability as prevalent in the other world Metros.