K'taka's first BTPS unit inaugurated

Bellary, Nov 3: Bellary Thermal Power Station (BTPS), Karnataka's first 500 MW thermal power unit located near Kudatini village in the district, was dedicated to the nation on Monday, Nov 3. The Rs 2100-crore project would help the power starved state in a big way. It faced one of the worst power shortage in recent years after BJP government which comes to power in the last May assembly elections had announced free supply of power to farmers.

The delayed BTPS, for which foundation was laid by UPA chairperson and Congress President in 2002 as one of the component of Rs 3000 crore a Bellary Package, is a flagship project of state-owned Karantaka Power Corporation limited (KPCL).

The project executed by public sector BHEL was delayed by one year and KPCL had invoked the penalty clause and claimed Rs 243 crore penalty from BHEL which executed the project on turn-key basis.

The BTPS would produce 3504 million units of power per annum. It had actually started its operation on trial basis in March this year had already generated over 192 million of power worth of over Rs 43 crore.

The Karnataka government has sought the Mega Power Project status from Union government for the project by proposing two more units of 500 MW each in two stages. The works of unit-II has commenced. The pre-implementation works of unit-III are in full swing.

Muralidhar Rao, Technical Director KPCL speaking to UNI said that the BTPS, first 500 MW capacity in Karnataka had a dedicated coal block at WCL near Nagpur has many firsts to its credit. This includes Reverse Osmosis as against Conventional De-mineralisation system. It had the country's first 275 metre high Chimney, which had bagged outstanding concrete structure award from Indian Concrete Institute during 2005.

He said that power generated in BTPS would be evacuated into KPTCL network through 400 kv double circuit Raichur-Guntur line with LILO arrangement at BTPS plant.

KPTCL had set up a joint venture company to own and develop the coal mine in Western coal fields near Nagpur to meet its requirement of over 2.2 million tones of coal per annum.

He said that KPCL had taken up an aggressive policy for promoting fly ash ulitisation. About 300 MT of ash would be generated per day and it was proposed to supply the fly ash to cement Industries and SSI units for making Bricks, tiles and lightweight aggregates. It would also be used in road construction, AC sheet production and ash dyke construction.

He said that KPCL had established a centre for fly ash utilisation technology and environmental conservation at the Raichur thermal power Station under an Indo-Norwegian programme. The objective of this centre was to generate awareness and promote fly ash utilisaton to the maximum extent.

Replying to questions Mr Muralidhar Rao said that KPCL had embarked upon two new hydel and two pumped storage schemes, three thermal, one wind and three solar photovoltaic projects of about 5000 MW capacity to be completed in the 11th and 12th five year plan.

UNI