NTPC, RIL seek time for out-of-court settlement

Mumbai, Apr 20 (UNI) National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) and Reliance Industries (RIL) today sought time from the Bombay High Court till June 20 for out-of-court settlement of their dispute over gas sale and purchase agreement (GSPA).

The adjournmment was granted by Justice S U Kamdar on the request of both the parties.

On March 28, the court had adjourned the hearing, on mutual consent, as RIL failed to file the detailed affidavit over the dispute in two weeks as asked by the court on February 28. Justice Kamdar had further asked the NTPC to file a rejoinder to the affidavit within 10 days of the RIL's stand on the disputed issue.

NTPC, the country's biggest power producer, had filed the petition against RIL on December 20 last year seeking a direction to RIL to sign the GSPA and also restraining it from entering into gas supply contract with any third party.

RIL has already signed an expression of interest (EoI) for supplying 132 trillion British thermal units of gas to NTPC's 2,600 MW plants at Kawas and Gandhar in Gujarat at US dollars 2.97 per MBTU gas for 17 years, from next year.

But during the hearing of the case, RIL had argued that the project has become ''unbankable'' in view of ''uncapped liability clause in the GSPA.'' UNI XR-ARM GK RL RS1939