Haryana to set up thermal power plant in Hisar

Chandigarh, Aug 2 (UNI) Haryana has initiated the process of setting up a coal-based power plant at Hisar with the capacity of 1000 MW.

The project will have four units of 250 MW each and the first unit is expected to be commissioned by March 2009.

The Haryana Power Generation Corporation Limited (HPGCL) has already acquired 689 acres of land in Hisar and have made arrangements for providing 50 cusecs of water for this mega project, Haryana Power Principal Secretary R N Prasher said here today.

The project would be set up by inviting globally competitive bids to construct the plant on turnkey basis, he added.

The annual rate of increase in demand of electricity in the state has reached around 15 per cent, much higher as compared to many other states, Mr Prasher said.

With the current installed capacity of 4076 MW, the demand for power in Haryana would be 7296 MW in the year 2011-12, an increase of 3220 MW from the current level, he said.

One of the major reasons for this increase in demand has been a rapid growth of national capital region (NCR) and the industrial sector, he pointed out.

With the ongoing efforts to bridge up the gap of demand and supply of electricity, Haryana was being considered as one of the most aggressive states in setting up the new power generating stations, he added.

According to HPGCL managing director Ms Jyoti Arora, it has been decided to set up 1000/1200 MW thermal power project with unit configuration of 2 X 250 MW to 300 MW and 1 X 500 MW to 600 MW or two units of 500-600 MW.

The selection of this size and configuration of Units shall not only benefit Haryana State in terms of more power but also shall be entitled for mega projects status thereby reducing the project cost by Rs 400 to 450 crore.

The matter regarding statutory/non-statutory clearances has been taken up with the quarters concerned, she added.

The tentative cost of project shall be around Rs 4000 crore and is proposed to be financed with debt/equity ratio of 80:20.

She said the construction work is scheduled to be awarded by October-November this year. The first unit is scheduled for commissioning by March 2009 and the other Units by September 2009.

With the commissioning of these units about 190/230 lakh units of electricity will be available to the consumers daily. The HPGCL is determined to provide all facilities reqired for timely setting up of the project.

Giving details of the ongoing construction of 600 MW thermal plant at Yamuna Nagar, two units of 300 MW each, Mrs Arora informed that the HPGCL has given top priority to the timely completion of these two units, scheduled to be commissioned in November 2007 and February 2008 to increase daily availability of electricity by 115 lakh units.

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