Coal & Oil Group secures Rs 1,600 cr addtl funds for Mutiara

Plant will be developed by Coastal Energen Private Ltd with capital expenditure exceeding Rs 6,800 cr

Dubai-based Coal & Oil Group has received Rs 1,600 crore additional funding for its 1,200-MW project at Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu.

"Coal & Oil Group has announced that it has secured additional funding of approximately Rs 1,600 crore to complete its 1,200 MW Independent Power Plant (IPP), presently under construction in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu," the company said in a statement today.

The Mutiara Thermal Power Plant aims to partly address the 5,000 MW power shortage in the state.

The plant will be developed by Coastal Energen Private Ltd, the power generating Flagship Company of the Coal & Oil Group.

It is also the region's second-largest private investor, with capital expenditure exceeding Rs 6,800 crore, the statement said.

The IPP will benefit from close proximity to both a major city (Tuticorin) and major port, as well as excellent road, rail and air connectivity, it added.

"India, and particularly, the state of Tamil Nadu, is currently facing severe power shortage. Our power project will be able to partly mitigate the hardships being faced by the state. In fact, we have committed to supplying a large part of our generation to the state grid," Ahmed Buhari, Founder, President and CEO of the Coal and Oil Group, said.

Mutiara power plant has obtained Rs 5,200 crore in funding from a consortium of Indian banks led by the State Bank of India.

This latest sanction will contribute to last mile funding and address cost escalation due to recent steep rupee devaluation, among other things. The power plant is slated for completion by June 2014, it further added.