Five mega hydel projects soon

Close on the heels of the ambitious ultra mega power plants, the government is planning five big-ticket hydroelectric power generation plants.

"Officials from National Hydroelectric Power Corporation, NTPC Ltd, Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd, North Eastern Electric Power Corporation and Tehri Hydro Development Corporation are currently working on identifying the projects and the process to be followed for competitive bidding for five projects," an official told Business Standard.

The proposed hydroelectric power projects may be of much larger capacity as compared to the highest present power generation capacity of 1,500 Mw at Nathpa Jhakri in Himachal Pradesh. Lower Subansiri in Arunachal Pradesh, which is under construction, is set to generate 2,000 Mw, the highest capacity for a hydel project in the country.

The states where these projects may be set up are Uttaranchal, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. The size of the proposed projects has not yet been finalised as geological and hydrological investigations are currently being carried out.

"As compared to other power generation projects, a hydel power plant needs intensive hydrological and geological investigation. One needs to be sure about the specific data and water flow. Every project is site-specific," the official added. Hydel power requires an investment of around Rs 5 crore per Mw.

India has a hydel power generation capacity of 32,135 Mw compared with the 82,297 Mw of thermal power.

"The Power Finance Corporation may be the nodal agency for the execution of these projects, in the same manner that has been adopted for the proposed ultra mega thermal power projects," said the official.