Delhi HC directs CIL to give full coal supply to R-Power for Butibori units

Firm says says while CIL was supplying to second unit of its plant, supply to first unit hadn't started despite Letter of Assurance from CIL's subsidiary

Anil Ambani-led Reliance Power on Monday said it will achieve full fuel security for its Butibori plant following a Delhi High Court order directing Coal India to supply coal to both the units of the plant.

“The Delhi High Court in its Order dated 31st January has granted interim relief to Butibori Thermal Power Plant (TPP) and has directed Coal India Limited (CIL) to immediately commence the supply of coal to Unit-1 of Butibori Plant, equivalent to annual contracted quantity of 1.23 million tonnes per annum through its subsidiary South Eastern Coalfields Limited,” the company said in its statement on Monday.

R-Power’s Butibori plant is a 600-megawatt capacity plant comprising of two units. The total power generated is sold to Reliance Infrastructure, which distributes electricity to Suburban Mumbai under a long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).

The company in its statement said while CIL was supplying coal to the second unit of its plant, supply to the first unit had not commenced despite a valid Letter of Assurance (LoA) issued by CIL's subsidiary pursuant to the recommendations of Standing Linkage Committee (Long-Term), consisting of the Coal Ministry, Power Ministry, CIL, Central Electricity Authority and Railways among others, in 2008, promising supply of 1.23 million tonnes per annum of coal for the unit. The issue of supply of coal to Unit 1 was pending since four years after the commissioning of the unit and commencement of power supply to Reliance Infrastructure in April 2014, the company added.