Jindal Power lines up Rs 65k cr projects

Naveen Jindal-led Jindal Power today said it will invest Rs 65,000 crore in new power projects and part of the financing for these would be done through its up to Rs 10,000-crore Initial Public Offer.

The Company, part of JSPL group, would create fresh thermal capacity of over 4,400 mw and hydel capacity of 6,100 mw, with commissioning of projects starting from 2014.

"We need internal financial of Rs 15,000 and the rest would come through debt for financing the projects.

"All this IPO money will primarily go to our expansion programme and balance would be funded from our internal accruals," Jindal Power Deputy Managing Director Sushil Maru told PTI a day after the company's Board decided for the IPO of up to Rs 10,000 crore.

As of now, the company, with a net worth of over Rs 7,000 crore, is generating surplus funds of about Rs 1500 crore, he said, adding "finances would not be a problem at all." The firm plans to fund the projects in the debt-equity ratio of 70:30.

Besides, the company would look at all opportunities, including acquisition and bid for any ultra mega power project that the government may put on the block, he added.

"We have a 1000 MW power plant operating at present. We have lined up projects to add 10,500 MW capacity entailing an estimated investment of Rs 65,000 crore... We will also look at commercially the best opportunity be it greenfield, brownfield or even acquisitions," he said.

"We are bidding. We have bid in the past for UMPPs too. We have bid for three UMPPs. So we will bid. In past we have only bid for local coal based power plants so let's see in the future as and when next UMPP comes up, we will understand everything and make our move," Maru said.

The government plans to invite qualifying bids for setting up UMPPs in Orissa, Tamil Nadu and Chhatisgarh by the end of the current financial year (FY'10). So far, it has awarded four such projects -- Sasan (Madhya Pradesh), Krishnapatnam (Andhra Pradesh), Tilaiya (Jharkhand) and Mundra (Gujarat).

Reliance Power has bagged the first three projects and the Mundra project is being executed by Tata Power.

The company at present operates the country's first mega power project – the 1,000 MW O P Jindal Super Thermal Power Plant at Raigarh in Chhattisgarh. It is constructing a 2,400-MW Independent Power Project in the state and has plans to set up a 2,000 MW thermal power plant and 6100 Hydel power project.