BHEL to supply 6 electric locomotives to NTPC for material handling ops

State-owned BHEL on Monday said it has received an order from NTPC for six electric locomotives to be used for the first time in the country for industrial application.

The locomotives will be manufactured at the company's facility in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh.

While the traction motors for the locomotives will be supplied from its Bhopal plant, IGBT (Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistors) based propulsion equipment will be developed and supplied by the Bengaluru unit, BHEL said in a statement.

"BHEL has achieved a major breakthrough in the rolling stock business by securing the order for 6,000 HP electric locomotives, first ever in the country for industrial application," the statement said.

The order has been placed by NTPC for supply of six 6,000 HP electric locomotives for material handling operations at Lara Thermal Power Project site in Chhattisgarh, it said without divulging any further information.

As the world continues to explore new ways of limiting carbon emissions in the transportation sector, BHEL's efforts in offering eco-friendly electric locomotives for industry will provide a relatively cleaner and alternative option to diesel electric locomotives, the company said.

So far, BHEL has supplied more than 450 electric locomotives of various ratings to Indian Railways which are running successfully.