Gail starts supply to Dabhol power plant

New Delhi, Jul 13 (UNI) State-run gas firm Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) today said it has started supply of gas from the Dahej terminal in Gujarat to Dabhol power plant through a 577 km pipeline in Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, the first such delivery to the power plant since its began operation last year.

It will take another week for the plant to generate power through this gas as it takes time to switch from LNG to gas.

''We delivered first gas to Dabhol plant around midnight on July 10,'' GAIL sources told UNI.

This is a landmark as it was completed in a record eight months' time despite several obstacles including opposition from farmers in Maharashtra and Gujarat, difficult terrain and bad weather, sources added.

Gas was transported through a 577 km pipeline from Dahej in Gujarat where Petronet LNG is importing 1.25 million tonnes of natural gas in liquefied form (LNG) from Qatar.

This is the first time the Dabhol plant has received gas supplies since beginning operations in May 1999.

Ratnagiri Gas and Power Pvt Ltd, the new owner of the project originally promoted by bankrupt US energy major Enron, will start generating about 1,400 MW of electricity from gas by this month-end.

It will scale up to peak capacity of 2,184 MW by the year-end when a third unit is commissioned.

Dabhol plant's Phase-I (740 MW) began operating on naphtha in May 1999, but was shut down in May 2001 after its sole customer Maharashtra State Electricity Board refused to buy expensive power.

After Enron's bankruptcy, the project was taken over by RGPPL -- a joint venture between state-owned power major NTPC Ltd, GAIL and Indian banks. RGPPL had restarted generation from naphtha in May last year.

UNI