The 4,000-mw Krishnapatnam ultra mega power project (UMPP) in Andhra Pradesh will be commissioned eight months ahead of schedule because of the new configuration chosen by the developer Reliance Power (RPL), part of the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG). The developer has committed the revised commissioning time-frame while seeking central electricity regulatory commission’s (CERC) approval for changing the plant configuration from 800 mw to 660 mw.
The project will supply power to key southern states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh besides Maharashtra.
While these states will benefit from the compressed commissioning time-frame of the Krishnapatnam project, it will also help PowerGrid advance its plan for setting up the proposed national electricity grid. The central transmission utility is waiting for the commissioning of the Krishnapatnam UMPP to connect the southern grid with other regional grids, leading to the creation of a unified national grid.
UMPP scheme envisages use of five units of 800 mw each. However, developers can use supercritical equipment of a different configuration. But for that, they need approval of bulk power buyers and the CERC.
RPL plans to use Chinese equipment in UMPPs won by it under the tariff-based competitive bidding route. It had earlier sought a similar change in plant configuration for the Sasan UMPP as well. RPL has bagged three UMPPs, including Tilaiya in Jharkhand.
While seeking CERC’s approval for the proposed change in equipment configuration, RPL argued that it would be able to advance commissioning schedule of the project by eight months if it was allowed to use 660 mw supercritical equipment instead of 800 mw envisaged under the scheme.
As per the schedule committed by RPL in power purchase agreements signed with bulk power buyers, the first 800 mw unit was to be commissioned in 68 months from the effective date and the entire capacity in 93 months.
But while seeking CERC’s approval for the revised plant configuration, it has committed to commission the first unit in 65 months and the entire capacity in 85 months. The CERC has accorded its approval for the proposed change in plant configuration for the project. RLP bagged Krishnapatnam UMPP by quoting a levelised tariff of 2.33 per unit. The developer achieved financial closure for the project recently.
NTPC sharpens bidding strategy
After losing the bidding race for the Sasan and Tilaiya ultra mega power projects, NTPC is now sharpening its bidding strategy. NTPC is confident of bagging UMPPs in the near future, says company chairman RS Sharma.
The government has envisaged 16 UMPPs in various states of which four have been allocated.
India’s largest thermal power generator fared badly in the bidding race for the Sasan UMPP, which was the first project under the scheme to be taken up for auctioning by the government in 2006. It quoted a levelised tariff of Rs 2.12 per unit compared with Rs 1.19 per unit offer of Lanco-Globeleq consortium which emerged as the lowest bidder for the project.
NTPC did not bid for the Mundra and Krishnapatnam UMPPs. It submitted bid for the Tilaiya UMPP and came second. While UMPPs at Sasan, Krishnapatnam and Tilaiya have gone to Reliance Power, Tata Power bagged the Mundra project.
?NTPC is revisiting its bidding strategy and confident of bagging UMPPs,? company chairman RS Sharma told FE.
The company is keen on bidding for UMPPs based on domestic coal. Power Finance Corporation, the nodal agency for auctioning UMPPs, has initiated the bidding process for two more UMPPs, one in Chhattisgarh and another in Orissa. NTPC is one of a dozen players who have shown interest in bidding for these projects.
