GE, Bechtel fail to appear in DPC case

Two key players in the Dabhol power plant controversy failed to appear before the Supreme Court despite notices being issued to them two weeks ago.

They had earlier challenged the jurisdiction of the court to implead them in an attempt to revive the plant and set an interim tariff for power supply.

The two companies are Capital India Power Mauritius, a subsidiary of GE, and Energy Enterprises, a subsidiary of Bechtel. GE and Bechtel are shareholders in the Dhabol Power Company.

The two foreign companies declined to submit to the jurisdiction of the apex court and maintained they would be represented by Dhabol Power Company.

They have written a letter explaining their stand and the DPC will deliver it to the court within a week.

The matter will come up again in January. The bench, headed by Justice Y K Sabharwal, has been trying to restart the project so that the money spent is not wasted and electricity is generated.

After US power company Enron went bankrupt and pulled out of the project, the ill-starred venture was caught in a mire of litigation. The plant was closed some two years ago and the assets taken over by leading financial institutions. A receiver has also been appointed.

The idea of restarting the plant was mooted when DPC moved the Supreme Court on November 17, objecting to the MSEB's decision to approach the Maharashtra Electricity Regulation Commission (MERC) on the setting of interim tariff.