A floating solar power plant was inaugurated at Periyakulam in Coimbatore city by MP Ganapathi P. Rajkumar (fourth left) on Wednesday. Mayor K. Ranganayaki (fourth right) and Corporation Commissioner M. Sivaguru Prabakaran (third right) are also in the picture.
| Photo Credit: SPL
The Coimbatore Corporation has commissioned a 154 kW floating solar power plant at Periyakulam (Ukkadam Big Tank) in the city.
The installation of the 280 solar panels was completed in October last year and the plant was on trial run.
The project was implemented under the Namakku Naame scheme at ₹1.45 crore, funded equally by the Government of Tamil Nadu and ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, South Asia.
According to officials, the floating solar installation occupied 13.7 cents of the lake’s surface and was designed to generate an average of 693 units a day.
The facility was equipped with HDPE floating pontoons, automated panel cleaning systems, weather monitoring instruments, protective fencing, CCTV surveillance, and fire suppression equipment.
The plant was inaugurated by Coimbatore MP Ganapathi P. Rajkumar in the presence of Mayor K. Ranganayaki and Corporation Commissioner M. Sivaguru Prabakaran.
A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the Madras High Court has sought a direction to stop commercial operations and remove the floating solar panels, claiming they were detrimental to migratory birds and aquatic species and might interfere with the ecological functioning of the lake. The Coimbatore Corporation has been asked to submit a report on the solar plant and commercial activities, and the matter was scheduled for hearing on December 5.
Published – November 26, 2025 08:37 pm IST
