REL on track to meet 15000mw goal

Despite Reliance Energy's (REL) ongoing legal battle with Reliance Industries (RIL) to ensure fuel availability for its gas-based power plants, the former is on track to achieve its installed capacity target of 15,000 mw from coal-based power projects over the next five years.

The company, currently, has an installed capacity of 941 mw spread over five projects.

The fate of two of its major projects, with a capacity of about 9,000 mw, is hanging in balance due to uncertainties over gas supplies. These are the 7,480-mw Dadri project and the 1,200-mw second phase of the 4,000-mw Shahapur power project in Maharashtra.

However, the company had lined up coal-based projects, with a total capacity of about 9,500 mw, apart from its plans to bid for the 4,000-mw Krishnapatnam ultra mega power project (UMPP) in Andhra Pradesh and other power projects coming up in the country, said company sources.

REL planned to add 15,000 mw capacity by 2012 with an investment of over $15 billion (Rs 60,600 crore), REL Chairman Anil Ambani had said at the company's annual general meeting (AGM) in July this year. Currently, it has a total installed capacity of 941 mw, which includes 500 mw in Dahanu, Maharashtra, 220 mw in Samalkot, Andhra Pradesh, 48 mw in Goa, 8 mw of wind energy in Karnataka and 165 mw in Kochi through its subsidiary BSES Kerala Power.

"The projects we have already announced are sufficient to reach our target. Further, we will bid for all the projects coming up in the near future. This means we will be able to reach the target on schedule. Financial closure of these projects may not be an issue since we have cash reserves of about Rs 11,000 crore," said company sources.

So far in the coal-based segment, the company has announced the 1,200-mw project in Rosa, Uttar Pradesh, the 2,800-mw first phase of the Shahapur project, the proposed expansion of its Dahanu power plant by adding another 1,200 mw capacity and the recently awarded 4,000-mw Sasan Ultra Mega Power Project (UMPP) in Madhya Pradesh, which it won following the disqualification of Lanco Infratech.

Apart from this, REL is adding another 300 mw coal power plant in Butibori near Nagpur, bagged through competitive bidding from Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC). This project will be commissioned by 2010.

"In the case of the Dahanu expansion plans, we require only one more clearance, from the local Dahanu Taluka Environment Protection Authority to start work on that project," said the company source. REL plans to commission the first phase of the 600-mw Rosa project by 2009-10 and the second phase by 2012. The land acquisition for the Shahanpur power project is expected to be over by December this year. The plant is expected to be completed within a period of 34 months. The recently awarded UMPP Sasan had to be commissioned within five years, by 2012, according to the bid norms, said sources.