NTPC allotted Mandakini B coal block for 4,000-Mw plant

The coal ministry has allocated Mandikini B coal block in Odisha to NTPC. The block, which has extractable reserves of 1.2 billion tonnes of coal, will fuel the public sector firm’s first 4,000-Mw power plant in Telangana.

The project, one of the largest to be taken up by the state-owned thermal power giant, is estimated to cost Rs 20,000 crore.

The plant is located at Ramagundam in Telangana’s Karimnagar district.

The project’s capacity matches with that of an ultra mega power project (UMPP). NTPC had failed to win a UMPP last year as other private bidders had pulled out.

Earlier this year, company executives had said the project would take 36-40 months to be commissioned. NTPC has around 23,000 Mw of capacity under construction and nearly 9,500 Mw capacity under bidding.

“Among other projects, feasibility reports for about 16,600 Mw have been approved. NTPC has signed a memorandum of association with the Jharkhand government to form a joint venture company for performance improvement and expansion of Patratu Thermal Power Station (770 Mw) with a proposed capacity expansion of 4,000 Mw,” said A K Jha, chairman and managing director of NTPC at the annual general meeting of the company on Friday.

NTPC’s cumulative installed capacity is 45,548 Mw. The company has made the single largest thermal capacity addition (8,445 Mw) in the country during the 12th Plan and is likely to exceed the target of 11,920 Mw set by the Government of India, the company said in a statement.