Uttaranchal govt plans gas-fired power plant

Talks on with GAIL for liquefied natural gas

The Uttaranchal government is planning to set up its first gas-fired power project in the state.

The state government is in talks with Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) for bringing in liquefied natural gas, which will be used as fuel. Going by industry benchmarks, the 300-Mw project will cost around Rs 1,000 crore.

"Apart from this, a one-time fixed cost of the pipeline connection will be Rs 400 crore," said Alok Kumar, managing director, State Industrial Development Corporation of Uttaranchal (SIDCUL), the apex institution that facilitates fresh investments in the state.

The proposed gas-based power project would be the first of its kind in the state, where, currently, only hydel power projects operate, generating around 1,125 Mw.

"This is an environmentally sensitive state, which has stayed away from generating power from fossil fuels. But with so many industrial projects taking shape, we need a backup power-generating mechanism, and not fully depend on hydel power, which can fail due to reasons beyond our control," Kumar said.

GAIL had, during initial talks with state officials, indicated that a minimum purchase of one million standard cubic meters of gas would make the laying of the pipeline feasible. "That is a volume we can safely assure," Kumar added.

The plan is to draw the pipeline infrastructure from Aonla, near Barelli (in Uttar Pradesh) to Pantnagar in Uttaranchal. "From Pantnagar, we can draw the lines to Sitarganj in the East and Kashipur in the West,' Kumar said.

Uttaranchal state, according to Chief Secretary M Ramachandran, would be a major power-generating state in the country, with a total commissioned capacity of 15,000 Mw by 2009-10.

Ramachandran said the state has set a target of providing all villages, which number between 14 to 15000, with power supply by 2007 and ensuring power supply reaches every household in the state by 2009.

Power-generating projects closer to commissioning in the state include the 1,000-Mw Tehri project, handled by Tehri Hydel Development Corporation anda 240-Mw project set up by National Hydel Power Corporation.

While these projects will be completed in the next two months, a 340 Mw project at Maneri Bhali will be ready be October 2006.