Upgrade of old power plants faces resistance in U'Khand

The Uttarakhand government’s move to modernise and renovate its old hydel projects under the public-private partnership (PPP) mode may have backfired, due to stiff opposition from various quarters.

But, Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd (UJVNL) has started preparing the developmental profile report (DPR) of three of these projects — 41.2 Mw Khatima, 20.4 Mw Pathari and 9.3 Mw Mohammadpur hydel projects, putting a question mark on the government’s bid to allocate them under the PPP mode.

“We are preparing the DPRs of all the three projects,” said a top official of the UJVNL, which now wants to renovate them.

In sharp contrast, the government recently told the state assembly that all these projects would be given under the PPP mode.

The confusion over the PPP issue had also mounted after Chief Minister B C Khanduri recently asserted that the government would weigh all options before adopting the PPP pattern.

Khanduri apparently took the U-turn in the wake of strong opposition in different quarters, on the handing over of the aging hydel projects under the PPP mode to private companies.

Led by the union of the UJVNL, which manages all these projects, and some Congress leaders, there has been sharp criticism of the government on the issue.

In July, the government, in a major policy decision, decided to invite private players to renovate all those hydel projects, which are more than 35 years old.

Under the cabinet decision, nearly 24 hydel projects were listed in this category, which were to be given on 30-year lease. The total capacity of all these projects is 500 Mw.

In the first phase, the government allegedly wanted to transfer three hydel projects — Khatima, Pathari and Mohammadpur to a foreign company under the PPP mode.

Official sources, however, said, the PPP decision was the best option, since the state desperately needs more power. Last year, the government suspended the construction of two of its major hydel projects — 480-Mw Pala Maneri and 400-Mw Bharion Ghati — under the pressure of environmentalist G D Agrawal, a move that also dampened the government’s bid to generate more power.