“We are setting up our biggest solar power project at an estimated cost of around Rs 700 crore in Rajgarh district next year. NTPC will sell the entire power generated from this project to Madhya Pradesh,” NTPC official said today.

“The government will soon ink a power purchase agreement with NTPC to procure energy from this project,” the official said.

According to NTPC officials, it has kick-started the process of setting up 5 Mw and 15 Mw solar stations in Orissa, Himachal Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh, but the company’s biggest non-conventional energy project would be set up in Madhya Pradesh.

“In all, we are working on generating over 100-Mw solar power energy projects across the country right now,” they said.
Agencies

The contract is worth about Rs. 43 crore.  It is also the single largest overseas order received by NTPC, making its foray as an overseas O&M operator. NTPC would offer O&M services for the 2×120 MW Gas-based Siddhirganj Peaking Power Plant near Dhaka.

“Services to be provided by NTPC includes Transition Management & Take Over services, O&M of owner’s facility, Recruitment & Training of owner’s staff, Health, Safety, Quality and Environment Management for a period of six years,” NTPC said in a statement.

EGCB would get funds for this O&M services from the International Development Association (The World Bank). India’s largest power producer, NTPC has an installed capacity of 35,354 MW, while 13,588 MW is under construction.
Agencies

While the coal consignment from 50 wagons have been unloaded, the nine wagons filled with soil have been left untouched. ECL has been intimated about the incident and asked to visit Kahalgaon to investigate the matter, he said. The 2340 MW Kahalhgaon plant receives 11 to 15 rail rakes per day to meet coal demand, but this was the first time that such an incident took place, Krishnan added.
Agencies

State-run NTPC, supplies over 2000 MW power to the Reliance-backed companies and has asked them to renew their letter of credit (LC) or that supply would be suspended. BRPL has outstanding dues of Rs 121 crores and BYPL Rs 74 crores, sources said. As per the notices to the two discoms, the two have outstanding dues worth Rs 195.48 crore.

When contacted, a BSES spokesperson said, “We are confident of getting the matter resolved. BSES will ensure uninterrupted power supply to its consumers in Delhi.” The notices, dated December 1, said that unless the dues are cleared, electricity supply to BRPL and BYPL would be suspended from December 8.
Times of India

The Coal Ministry panel had in May cancelled the allocation of 14 coal blocks and one lignite block to companies, including NTPC and DVC, over their failure to develop them within the stipulated time frame. In August, Power Minister Sushilkumar Shinde had written to Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal asking for a review of the deallocation decision. The Power Ministry had also written to the Coal Ministry seeking a review of the decision to de-allocate blocks awarded to DVC.

Earlier, Jharkhand Chief Minister Arjun Munda had met Jaiswal, seeking the reversal of the ministry’s decision to cancel allotment of a coal block to a state-run power utility. The Coal Ministry panel was formed early this year to take a call on captive coal blocks lying idle with several firms.

The panel had de-allocated five blocks — Chatti Bariatu, Chatti Bariatu (S), Kerandari, Brahmani and Chichiro Patsimal — that were awarded to state-run power producer NTPC. The government had also cancelled the licence for the Saharpur Jamarpani coal block in Jharkhand, which was allocated to DVC in 2007. The Banhardih mine in Jharkhand, which was allocated to JSEB in 2006, was also taken away by the Coal Ministry, as implementation of all milestones under the project were pending.
Agencies

NTPC previously invited bids by May 26 for a single contract to supply 4 million tons of coal needed at 14 of its power plants. This time, orders may be awarded to as many as five suppliers, Choudhury said.

Coal production growth in India has slowed after delays in environmental approvals and land acquisition for mines. The commodity is used to fire more than half of the electricity generation capacity in Asia’s second-biggest energy consumer. State-run NTPC is going ahead with coal imports although the rupee has fallen, the chairman said. The Indian currency declined 6.7 percent this month 52.21 per dollar, the most since March 1992.

“If the rupee goes to 100 per dollar, then it becomes a bigger deal, but right now there’s been no hue and cry from our buyers,” Choudhury said. The current bidding opened on Nov. 21 and will close on Dec. 23, according to documents posted on NTPC’s tenders website.
Agencies

ICVL was promoted by five state-owned firms two years ago to buy coal mines overseas. While Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) and Coal India Ltd own 28% each of ICVL, NTPC, rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd and NMDC Ltd own 14% each. The 14% share of India’s largest power generation utility in the consortium, which hasn’t managed to close a single purchase, is expected be split proportionately among the remaining partners.

The exit will end the acrimony among the partners that surfaced last year when then steel minister Virbhadra Singh had said that NTPC and Coal India could exit the consortium if they wished to.

ICVL was floated on the coal ministry’s initiative and has an initial equity capital of Rs. 3,500 crore and authorized capital of Rs. 10,000 crore. An NTPC spokesperson confirmed that the exit is taking place and that the details will be worked out after “requisite due diligence”.

Coal India continues to be part of the consortium. A top power ministry official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said earlier that it had informed the steel ministry “that NTPC would like to opt out”.

Mint reported on 21 September that ICVL seemed headed for a split with NTPC wanting to exit. NTPC subsequently made a presentation to its parent ministry elaborating on the reasons for this.

According to NTPC, while the power producer needs thermal coal to fuel its power projects back home, ICVL’s other stakeholders are largely interested in metallurgical coal reserves to feed their steel mills. And the thermal coal offered to it does not meet the utility’s technical requirements.

“Our controlling ministry has given its assent to our proposal. We have already received a letter in this regard. Now, only the process part is left. Our share will be proportionately acquired by the remaining partners,” said a senior NTPC executive aware of the development who didn’t want to be identified.

The exit could actually work to the benefit of NTPC, said an expert.

“For NTPC, the development may mean a focused approach in the pursuit of coal resources,” said Dipesh Dipu, director, consulting (mining), at Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India Pvt. Ltd. “Chasing opportunities on its own and simultaneously being part of a consortium may have led to strategic ambiguity.”

Still, the breakup will pose a challenge to “the efforts of the government to create a sovereign fund like arrangement and create a unified acquisition resource pool in the form of ICVL,” he said.

NTPC’s decision comes at a time when the country is facing its worst coal shortage. India faces a shortage of both metallurgical and thermal coal.

A top ICVL executive who didn’t want to be identified said the company “had received a copy of the (power ministry’s) letter”. This person said the company would discuss what needs to be done with the power utility’s stake. While private Indian firms have been successful in securing coal resources overseas, government-owned entities such as ICVL and NTPC have not been able to do so. The split in ICVL only highlights the challenges involved, Dipu said.

“While government-owned firms have been in the race too it seems the compliance requirement (for) procedures and lack of tolerance to risk-taking has caused them to be slow. Alignment of individual corporate objectives may have been yet another reason for the same,” he added.

NTPC, which generates 8 megawatts (MW) of every 10MW it produces by burning coal, is looking to increase installed capacity from 34,854MW now to 75,000MW by 2017 and 128,000MW by 2032. It needs 160 million tonnes (mt) of coal in fiscal 2012, of which around 16 mt has to be imported. The utility has already placed orders for importing 12 mt of coal and placed a tender on Monday to import another 4 mt.
HT Mint

“We will seek bids for supply of imported coal for a period of 15-20 years. The amount will be up to 20 million tonne per year,” NTPC CMD Arup Roy Choudhury said.

He said bids wills be invited in next two to three months. According to Choudhury, NTPC needs to securities imported coal, which accounts for about 10 per cent of the company’s total requirements.

Recently, severe coal shortages due to multiple factors had hurt power generation at various NTPC plants. “As of now, our plants are generating the full (power) as demanded from us,” he said.

Noting that imported coal would not be the solution for the country due to its cost, he said that domestic coal production needs to be increased. “The main issue is whether the power we generate is affordable or not,” he noted.

State-run NTPC has an installed capacity of over 35,000 Mw.
Agencies

So far, 34 power plants have been allocated 29.14 mmscmd of gas from KG-D6 fields. The Bawana power project was allocated 0.93 mmscmd gas from KG-D6 for 2009-10 and 2010-11, but the plant has missed scheduled deadline for commissioning. Meanwhile, output from KG-D6 dipped sharply, leaving no gas from Bawana when it commissions this month. Reliance is producing less than 42 mmscmd of gas from KG-D6 against 61.5 mmscmd in March last year.

All the current production is consumed by power and fertiliser units, leaving almost nothing for steel plants and refineries who too had been allocated KG-D6 gas. Sources said to salvage the situation, powers plants getting KG-D6 gas have been asked to take a proportionate cut in supplies ranging between 0.001 mmscmd-0.165 mmscmd.

Besides, 0.85 mmscmd from KG-D6, Bawana would get 1.564 mmscmd from state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp’’s (ONGC) fields off the west coast. While KG-D6 gas will cost USD 4.205 per million British thermal unit, fuel from ONGC would be priced at USD 5.25 per mmBtu, sources said.The first unit of the 1,500 MW Bawana power project is set to go onstream later this month and improve power situation in the national capital.

The power plant is being built by the Delhi government, with an investment of about Rs 4,500 crore and three turbines, with a production capacity of 750 MW have already been synchronised while construction of three other turbines with equal generation capacity are expected to be completed early next year. The plant was supposed to be ready ahead of last year’’s Commonwealth Games in October.
Agencies

“Total capacity of NTPC group has risen to 35,354 MW with the commissioning of Unit-II of 500 MW of Indira Gandhi Super Thermal Power Project at Jhajjar (Haryana),” the company said.

The Unit-II was commissioned on November 5. Prior to this, NTPC’s installed capacity stood at 34,854 Mw. The project is a joint venture between NTPC and the governments of Haryana and Delhi.

“NTPC is currently working on many new projects for rapid capacity addition and plans to become 1,28,000 MW plus company by 2032,” CMD NTPC Arup Roy Choudhury said while addressing the company’s employees at a meeting.  It is currently working on projects with a cumulative capacity of 40,000 MW. Of this, projects to add 14,000 MW are in various stages of implementation.

NTPC plants generated 220.54 Billion Units (BUs) of electricity during 2010-11, contributing more than 27 per cent of total electricity generated in India with about 18 per cent share of country’s total installed capacity, an official statement said.

The company is also inviting suggestions from its employees for improving its management practices. “NTPC looks forward to the suggestions of employees for incorporating better policies and systems of the company,” Choudhury said.

The company recently tied up a syndicated loan worth Rs 2,341 crore from a consortium of Indian banks for its 390-MW Muzaffarpur thermal power project in Bihar.

NTPC Kanti Bijlee Utpadan Nigam Limited, a subsidiary of NTPC Limited, has achieved financial closure on its Muzaffarpur thermal power project that consists of two units of 195 MW each.

The company has mobilised loans worth Rs 10,000 crore from State Bank of India this fiscal (2011-12). It has also secured a USD 300 million loan from Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd, Singapore
Agencies