RPower commissions Sasan's first unit

It recently filed a petition with the CERC seeking compensation due to cost escalation at the plant

Reliance Power today said that it has connected the first 660 megawatt unit of its 4,000 megawatt Sasan ultra mega power project, to the grid.

The coal mines from two of the three the captive coal mines which came with the power project had started producing two quarters back. The third mine Chhatrasal has received forest clearance and is currently under development.

“I am confident that Sasan power project and coal mine would set new benchmarks in operational efficiency,” said J P Chalsani, chief executive officer of the power project. The project was bagged by RPower in 2007, at a levelised tariff of Rs 1.20 per unit.

Reliance Power has recently filed a petition with the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) seeking compensation from the government due to cost escalation at its Sasan power plant. It quoted 'unprecedented depreciation of the rupee' as one of the reasons.

The total cost of setting-up the power plant as well as developing the mine is estimated at Rs 23,000 crore. RPower which bought all of its power equipment from Shanghai Electric, has also attained economical finance from Chinese banks, in a bulk deal signed across its large portfolio.  

As many as 14 distribution companies will buy power from this ultra mega power project. Sasan is the second ultra mega power project to come on stream after Tata Power's UMPP in Mundra, Gujarat. Mundra UMPP  recently synchronised the fifth and last unit of the project, taking the project to its full capacity of 4,000 megawatts.

Tata too approached the electricity regulatory seeking an increase in its tariffs, to pass on its increased coal costs. The imported-coal based power project became unviable after Indonesia, the country where it buys coal from, changed its regulations.

RPower's stock went up 1.53% to Rs 76.3 per share, at 11:10 am.