New policy on hydel power within next 2-3 months: Shinde

New Delhi, Aug 20 (UNI) The government today said it would bring in a new policy on hydel power within the ''next two-three months'' to tap the enormous potential of the sector pegged at 1.5 lakh MW.

In a detailed reply in the Rajya Sabha, Power Minister S K Shinde said the Department of Power had been tasked with preparing the new hydel policy.

''We hope to introduce the new policy within the next two-three months,'' Mr Shinde said.

He also exuded confidence that by 2012, the terminal year of the XIth Plan, the country would have a peaking surplus of 0.7 per cent and 5.6 per cent energy surplus.

The minister said the capacity of hydel power in the Himalayan ranges had been estimated at 1.5 lakh MW while the total installed capacity of power was 1.2 lakh MW from all segments -- thermal, hydro and nuclear.

Conceding there had been slippage in power generation during the Tenth Plan, he said it was because of a number of constraints, including lack of equipment.

He said the government was considering a proposal to procure equipment from private companies like L&T and MHI.

On the issue of gas pricing for the power sector, Mr Shinde said an Empowered Group of Ministers (EGM) had been formed to look into the issue in all its aspects.

Replying to a query, he said the government had also formed a Committee of Secretaries (CoS) to evalute bidding documents of Power Finance Corporation (PFC) projects and thereby prevent delays in their approval.

''The Committee will present its report within 15 days to prevent the Sasan-like lapse,'' he said, referring to the 4000 MW Sasan ultra mega power project, the first such project in the country which was recently awarded to the Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Group after Lanco Consortium's bid was found illegal and consequently terminated.

Mr Shinde said during the first year (2007-08) of the XIth Plan, a capacity of 1935 MW -- 1360 MW of thermal, 355 MW of hydel and 220 MW of nuclwar power -- had been commissioned till August 15 this year.

At present, a generation capacity of another 50,910 MW, which is being monitored by the Central Electricity Authority, is under execution, which is to be commissioned during the XIth Plan. This consists of 33,504 MW in the thermal, 14,246 MW in the hydel and 3160 MW in the nuclear segments.

The minister said power shortage in the Ninth Plan was to the tune of 7.5 per cent which rose to 9.6 per cent at the end of the Tenth Plan.

Replying to a supplementary, he said the Bongaigaon thermal power project in Assam was under the active consideration of the government.

Assam will get 320 MW from this coal-based power project, he pointed out.

Replying to a specific query from BJP leader Yashwant Sinha, he said there was no proposal to shelove the North Karan thermal power station in Jharkhand.

UNI