Amarkantak 210 MW Unit synchronised

New Delhi, Jun 16 (UNI) The 210-MW unit at the Amarkantak thermal power station of the Madhya Pradesh Power Generating Company in Anuppur district was synchronised on oil today.

The power station already has two 30 MW units and two 120 MW units operating.

Union Minister of State for Commerce and Power Jairam Ramesh, who was present, said there was urgent need to reinvigorate the renovation and modernisation programme of power plants with a view to increase plant load factors as also increase efficiency measured in terms of heat rates.

The Minister drove home the point that while synchronisation on oil of the unit was a milestone, it would be another four months before the unit was commercially operational.

In this context, he noted that the single 500 MW unit at Birsinghpur in Umaria district (as part of the Sanjay Gandhi Thermal Power Station that already has four 210 MW units (operating) which was declared "commissioned" in June 2007, was yet to start full commercial operation. This made it all the more urgent to change the present definition of "commissioning".

However, he said, he had been assured by BHEL that the Birsinghpur unit will reach commercial operation by mid-August 2008.

There were substantial deviations in observed and design heat rates (kcal/kwh). There are 77 200/210 MW units and five 500 MW units with a combined capacity of around 15,000 MW that should be considered for efficiency-oriented R&M on a priority basis.

The minister said in 2007-08 the 520-MW Omkareshwar project of the Narmada Hydro Development Corporation (NHDC), a 50:50 joint venture of the central government public sector enterprise NHPC and the Madhya Pradesh state government, was fully commissioned.

He complimented NHDC, which was set up in August 2000, for completing the Omkareshwar project in a record three and a half year's time. Earlier, the 1000 MW Indira Sagar Project had been commissioned.

NHDC has three more projects adding up to 160 MW which are expected to come on stream by 2011-12.

Mr Ramesh also recalled that NTPC has established 3260 MW of generating capacity at Vindhyachal in Sidhi district (6x210 MW + 4x500 MW) -- the largest capacity at one single location established so far in the country.

Expressing hope that work on the 4000 MW ultra mega power project of Reliance Power at Sasan in Sidhi district of M P, in which the state's share is 1500 MW, would start soon, Mr Ramesh said he has been assured by Reliance Power that at least one 660 MW unit would be commissioned in the Eleventh Plan period (before March 31, 2012).

Work on the 4000 MW ultra mega power project at Mundra in Gujarat being put up by Tata Power has already commenced with boilers being supplied by the South Korean company Doosan and the turbine-generator sets by Toshiba.

The third 4000 MW ultra power project at Krishnapattnam in Andhra Pradesh, also being implemented by Reliance Power, is at an advanced stage of finalisation.

The letter of intent for the fourth UMPP at Tiliaya in Jharkhand will be issued shortly, he added.

He was accompanied by Madhya Pradesh Power Minister Dr Gauri Shankar Shajawar.

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