State signs PPAs with NTPC, Neyveli Lignite for 1,008 Mw

The Karnataka government today signed three Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) for the procurement of 1,008 Mw of power with the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC), Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) and Srinivasa Gayithri Resources Recovery Ltd, a renewable energy developer from Bangalore.

NTPC is setting up a 4,000 Mw (5x800) regional mega coal-based thermal power plant at Pudimadakka in Visakhapatnam district of Andhra Pradesh in which Karnataka’s share is 600 Mw. NLC is setting up 1,980 Mw (3x660) at Sirkali coal-based thermal power project at Nagapattinam district of Tamil Nadu, in which the state’s share is 400 Mw. The state will get power from both the units in about four years.

Srinivasa Gayithri Resources Recovery Ltd is setting up India’s first integrated waste-to-energy power plant of 8 Mw in Bangalore city in association with Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) as a public-private partnership initiative. It will sell the power to state grid.

State minister for energy Shobha Karandlaje said the government has taken up a huge capacity expansion programme. KPCL has planned 9,000 Mw of new projects which are likely to be commissioned by 2014-15 for an investment of Rs 35,000 crore. In addition to the development of power projects, the state is also purchasing power through the bid route on a short, medium and long-term basis. With these efforts, the state would become self-sufficient in power by 2014, she said.

Chief minister B S Yeddyurappa, who witnessed the signing of PPAs, said his government has added 2,660 Mw of power generation capacity in the last two years. Of this, the Karnataka Power Corporation Limited (KPCL) has added 980 Mw and, cogeneration and windmills have added 1,079 Mw.

During December 2010, the state witnessed the highest peak demand of 7,634 Mw with 155.85 million units on December 30. This is the first time that the state has seen such a high peak, he said.

On the “waste-to-energy” power project at Manduru village in Bangalore East Taluk, he said this is the first and only plant being set up in the entire country to be given subsidy of Rs 5 crore by the Union Ministry of Renewable Energy. “If this plant is successful, the government would actively encourage setting up more such plants which would effectively handle and dispose municipal solid waste in an environment-friendly and sustainable manner,” Yeddyurappa said.

The cost of the waste-to-power project is Rs 80 crore. Srinivasa Gayithri Resource Recovery has entered into an agreement with Bruhat Bangalrore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to implement the project under which the company would receive 1,000 tonnes of municipal solid waste per day. The capacity of the plant will be increased to 15 Mw in the second phase.

The company has received all approvals from various agencies and obtained term loan assistance from a consortium of banks, which includes Indian Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce and India Infrastructure Finance Company Ltd.

The company is also constructing landfill cells for the scientific disposal of the inerts after processing municipal solid waste.

It will also produce organic manure as a by-product of the power plant, also known as city compost.