The hydropower sector in Uttarakhand is feeling the pinch of the recession, with developers wary of making new investments in the sector.
Officials sources said development of hydropower was itself a slow process and the slowdown has only created more problems.
Recently, WWI-RRE, a consortium of RR Energy and Worlds Window Impex, had agreed to pay Rs 41.5 crore, including an upfront premium of Rs 29.5 crore, considered to be the highest in the country, for building four hydel projects in the Nayar Valley with a total capacity of 23.25 Mw.
But, after depositing the initial amount of Rs 50 lakh with the state government, the consortium backed out apparently due to the global recession.
Meanwhile, the state government is collecting data to assess the impact of the slowdown on the hydropower sector. “We are not untouched by the slowdown in the hydropower sector. But in order to know the real impact, we are trying to assess it,” a top official said.
Officials of private companies in Uttarakhand said the hydropower sector had slowed down during the past one year due to the meltdown and that it would take another six to 12 months to beat the recession.
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The correct picture, they said, would emerge when the state government would invite financial bids regarding the development of small hydel projects in the next one to two months.
However, Yogendra Prasad, chairman of Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited, is of the view that there is hardly any affect of the recession on the hydropower. “If you have the will, you can raise funds for your projects even during the slowdown,” said Prasad.
The power scenario in the hill state turned gloomy after the government last year suspended the construction of 480 Mw Pala Maneri and 381 Mw Bhaironghati hydel projects on Bhagirarthi river.
L&T too suffered the wrath of the government last week when its 99 Mw Singoli-Bhatwari project was stopped.
Government officials said the meltdown had affected the projects belonging to companies like NTPC, NHPC, THDC, Reliance, Lanco, GVK, L&T and others in the state.
Projects allocated to various central utilities including NHPC, NTPC, and private developers are to the tune of 13,667 Mw.
According to official reports, the total hydro potential in the state is 25,450 Mw with an installed capacity of 2,810 Mw.