The 4,000-Mw ultra mega power project (UMPP) at Sarguja in Chhattisgarh is likely to be the only project for which the power ministry would invite qualifying bids this financial year.
“No UMPP other than Chhattisgarh in this financial year,” Power Secretary H S Brahma said, without specifying the reasons for not issuing request for qualification for the other two.
The government had earlier announced RFQs for three UMPPs — Sarguja (Chhattisgarh), Bedabahal (Orissa) and Cheyyur (Tamil Nadu).
PFC Consulting, the wholly-owned subsidiary of state-run Power Finance Corp, is the nodal agency for these UMPPs.
Ministry of Power had envisaged setting up nine such projects which would help meet the electricity generation target of 100,000 MW in the 12th Plan period (2012-17). The government has already allotted four of the total nine such projects. Three UMPPs have been bagged by Reliance Power —Sasan (Madhya Pradesh), Krishnapatnam (Andhra Pradesh) and Tilaiya (Jharkhand).
