Speaking at a seminar on the power sector organised by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) here, the minister said the hike in ceiling would mean that private power projects upto 1,000 mw capacity would not require techno-economic clearance from the Central Electricity Authority (CEA).
However, Venugopalachari said, the measure would apply only to projects promoted by the state governments and state electricity boards on the basis of competitive bidding.
The minister pointed out that only recently the Centre had raised the financial limit for generation projects from Rs 400 crore to Rs 1,000 crore, which itself was a major step towards liberalising the clearance procedure.
The proposal under consideration was only a step towards achieving quicker clearances and spur private investment in the power generation sector, he asserted.
Venugopalachari informed the gathering that the Centre was trying to ensure that the environmental clearance and fuel linkages clearance for private power projects were given at the state level itself, which would cut down on unnecessary delays.
The government, he pointed out, was also taking efforts to bring out a model detailed project report (DPR), which if followed by the private sector, would speed up execution of the projects and would go a long way in spurring private investment in the power generation sector.
