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Uk Firm To Invest $355m In Hinduja Power

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Last Updated : Sep 11 1996 | 12:00 AM IST

The Hindujas, the non-resident Indian joint venture partners in this project, will chip in Rs 10 crore.

A consortium of Indian development financial institutions led by the Industrial Development Bank of India have already pledged Rs 600 crore for the project.

The financial closure for the proposed 1040-MW Hinduja National Power project is likely to be fixed from early next year, say sources close to HNPL.

The Central Electricity Authority (CEA), which has already given the go-ahead for the project, has asked the promoters to complete the first unit of the project within 38 months of the zero date.

The CEA has also given an indicative figure of total project which has been estimated at $943.7 million in addition to the rupee cost of Rs 1,324.99 crore.

This cost has been estimated excluding the dollar fluctuations and import duty variations in the future.

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The revised costs however will be put up for scrutiny of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board for its final seal of approval.

The initial cost had been fixed at around Rs 4,900 crore but was subsequently revised to near about Rs 4,660 crore despite enhancement of capacity by 4 per cent to 1,040 MW in March this year.

Along with cost cutting, the project planners have depressed auxiliary power consumption by 0.5 percentage points.

In addition, the heat rate has also been brought down from 2,500 kilocalories to 2,450 kilocalories.

The debt-equity ratio for the project has been fixed at 73:27, with most of the funds coming from the Exim Bank of Japan and the Export Credit Guarantee Department of UK.

The union ministry of environment has recently fixed 34 per cent as the permissible coal ash content level as a condition for environmental clearance for the proposed Hinduja National Power Project.

This conditionality was laid down after the ministry gave the environmental approval for the project on Thursday. This was a key hurdle, since another fast-track power project, Cogentrix, has stumbled on the environment issue.

The 34 per cent conditionality may entail the Union coal ministry setting up a coal washery for supplying washed coal for the project.

This issue is slated to come up for discussions a fortnight later at a high level tripartite meeting between HNPL, the Railways and the coal ministry.

This contingency has surfaced after a coal supply agreement with Mahanadi Coalfields was found unsatisfactory by the government.

The vital issue for discussion however remains risk bearing to the extent of 68.49 per cent of the plant load factor jointly by the Indian Railways and the coal ministry in the case of fuel dislocation.

Earlier such risks were borne by the state electricity board.

Sources expect that some positive indications are forth coming after the tripartite meeting as this scheme has the nod of approval of the government of India.

Along with cost cutting, the project planners have depressed auxiliary power consumption by 0.5 percentage points.

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First Published: Sep 11 1996 | 12:00 AM IST

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