Rs.19,422 cr pithead plant at Talabira to supply power to Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Kerala
NLC India Ltd (NLCIL) is setting up Rs.38,828 crore thermal plants each at Ghatampur in Uttar Pradesh and Talabira in Odisha as a preparation for the future of India’s Coal Sector, and the Ministry of Coal is proactively promotion large scale diversification among CPSEs.
NLCIL has formulated plans to construct a Rs.19,422 crore 3 X 800 MW pithead thermal power plant at Talabira in Odisha to supply 1,450 MW power to Tamil Nadu, 100 MW to Puducherry and 400 MW to Kerala. The project is expected to begin by the end of this year and likely to be completed by 2028-29.
The Rs.19,406 crore plant at Ghatampur near Kanpur will generate 3 x 660 MW power,the Ministry of Coal said on 7 Aug 2023.
A joint venture between NLCIL and the Government of Uttar Pradesh, the project will be supplying 1,478.28 MW to Uttar Pradesh and 492.72 MW to the state of Assam. The project has been into implementation phase and the first phase of this plant is expected to start generating power by the end of this year.
Coal India Ltd (CIL) is in the process to establish two thermal power plants. One, located near Amarkantak as a joint venture with the Madhya Pradesh Government. The Rs.5,660 crore plant of 1×660 MW is in the advanced stage of approval and SECL, a subsidiary of CIL, will invest Rs.857 crores as equity.
The project will be executed through a joint venture between SECL and Madhya Pradesh Power Generating Company Ltd. The work of this project is expected to commence by the end of this financial year, with completion targeted for 2028. Required land for the project has already been arranged.
Moreover, Mahanadi Coal Fields Ltd (MCL), another subsidiary of CIL, has set up Mahanadi Basin Power Limited, as a fully owned subsidiary. MCL plans to establish a 2×800 MW thermal power plant near its Basundhara Mines. This pithead plant, with an estimated cost of Rs. 15,947 crores, has received interest from different States for 4,000 MW worth Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs). Work on this project is expected to begin around the middle of next year and targeted completion date is set for 2028.
The Ministry of Coal has advised all subsidiaries of CIL to find suitable de-coaled land for establishing new pithead thermal power plants.
Setting up power plants at pithead is more cost-effective, with a tentatively fixed cost of approximately Rs.2.5 and a variable cost of about Rs.1.25 per unit, making it possible to generate power at less than Rs.4 per unit.
This decision comes as coal is projected to be surplus in the future, and it aims to ensure sustainability in operations for CIL and NLCIL with setting up of new thermal power plants.
As per the policies of the Ministry of Power, required renewable energy potential is also been created along with the thermal power plant so that the power generation can be augmented with the combination of thermal as well as solar. This will help to supply power in cost effective manner to the end users. Fiinews.com
