Govt in talks with ADB, Power Finance Corp.
The Uttarakhand government is in talks with financial institutions like the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Power Finance Corporation to revive a couple of big hydel projects.
“We are in touch with various financial institutions to revive our stalled hydel projects,” said a top government official.
The ADB, which has been funding small hydel projects in the hill state, has evinced interest in big projects too, the official said.
With the hydropower sector taking a beating following suspension of three major hydel projects, the state government restarted construction work on the 120 Mw Vyasi hydel project, which was stalled two decades ago due to paucity of funds.
The Vyasi dam is being developed by Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (UJVNL) on the river Yamuna in Dehra Dun district with a cost of Rs 759 crore. The project would produce 438.38 million units of peaking power annually and earn a revenue of Rs 105.29 crore per year.
More From This Section
Vyasi is part of the 420 Mw integrated Lakhwar-Vyasi project, which was awarded in July last to UJVNL to make up the loss of its two key dams – 480 Mw Pala Maneri and 381 Mw Bhaironghati on the river Bhagirathi, which were put on hold by the state government on environmental grounds.
Besides Lakhwar-Vyasi, the other stalled project is the 600 Mw Kishau on the river Tons in Dehra Dun district.
The state government is now considering a move to resume work on this multi-purpose project where work has remained stalled during the past one decade.
For this purpose, the government is planning to allocate the project on a 50:50 joint venture to both UJVNL and Tehri Hydro Power Corporation, which is preparing the detailed project report.
The official said the joint venture would help in the early completion of the project. The decision in this regard is likely to be taken shortly.