JSL steps up power supply to state grid

Jindal Stainless Ltd.(JSL),which operationalised the second unit of its 2x125Mw Captive Power Plant (CPP) at Kalinganagar after the change of the transformer on May 5, has increased supply of power to the state grid.

The company, which was supplying about 70 Mw on an average to Gridco from first week of March when only one unit of its CPP was operating, has stepped up supply to 145 Mw as of today. This has come to the rescue of the state government facing severe power shortage.

“We are committed to supply the surplus power to Gridco till the power situation improves in the state. If every thing goes as scheduled, the supply to the state grid may reach 170 Mw by May 28th”, Rajdeep Mohanty, chief resident manager (Orissa), JSL Ltd. said.

It may be noted, the company has been supplying surplus power to the state grid from its CPP at Kalinganagar following a request from the government.

However, the expected supply of 150 Mw from Bhushan Energy Ltd (BEL), setting up of 2000 Mw power plant near Angul, is yet to materialise.

Though the company agreed to provide this power from the first unit of its (2x150Mw) project and the state-owned Orissa Power Transmission Corporation Ltd. (OPTCL) arranged the necessary connectivity to Grid, the power is yet to actually flow due to delay from the company side. The supply of power is expected to start from May 25, sources said.

Orissa is one among the few states which have not resorted to load shedding in the summer though the situation remains grim due to drop in hydro-electricity generation because of falling water levels in reservoirs and increase in the average peak demand to about 2350 Mw.