Revival plan for Dabhol project finalised, says Power Minister Piyush Goyal
State-owned Ratnagiri Gas and Power, a joint venture formed for the revival of the Dabhol project of the scandal-hit and now defunct Enron Corporation of the US, will be split into two ventures as part of a revival plan finalised by the government, Power Minister Piyush Goyal said on Wednesday.
The joint venture, between the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) and GAIL (Gas Authority of India Limited) India, will be split into two power entities – one for gas-based electricity and the other for liquefied natural gas re-gasification terminal, the power minister said at a press conference.
“We will begin generating power from November 1,” Goyal said, adding “We will waive off value added tax and transmission charges on supplies to the railways.”
“Indian Railways will enter into a long term power purchase agreement with the company and the plant would supply 500 MW to the railways”, he said.
The minister informed that the company held a board meeting where several issues concerning all stakeholders were resolved.
He also announced a capital infusion of Rs 2,000 crore for increasing the LNG-handling capacity.
“GAIL will provide gas while NTPC will operate the project”, the power minister said, adding that lenders have also converted a large part of their debt into equity in Ratnagiri Gas and Power.
The gas-fired 1,967 megawatt plant has remained shut since January last year as it was starved of fuel after a fall in output at KG-D6 basin .
NTPC and GAIL hold 25.51 per cent stake each, while the rest is held by Maharashtra State Electricity Board (13.51 per cent) and various financial institutions (35.47 per cent).
The company has its plant at Anjanwel village in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra, some 330 km from Mumbai. The project is spread over almost 1,700 acres on hilly and picturesque coastal terrain. The gas-based power station is one of India’s largest.
