Bhel drops on reports the company's Yadadri thermal project at risk due to ecological concerns

Bharat Heavy Electricals fell 1.57% to Rs 168.95 at 14:41 IST on BSE on reports that the company's 4,000 megawatts Yadadri thermal power project in Telangana is at risk after deferral of terms of reference for the project due to ecological concerns.

Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 64.18 points or 0.25% at 26,098.31.

On BSE, so far 3.14 lakh shares were traded in the counter as against average daily volume of 4.49 lakh shares in the past one quarter.

The stock was volatile. The stock fell as much as 3.02% at the day's low of Rs 166.45 so far during the day. The stock rose as much as 0.96% at the day's high of Rs 173.30 so far during the day. The stock had hit a 52-week high of Rs 299.50 on 4 February 2015. The stock had hit a 52-week low of Rs 164.10 on 8 December 2015.

The stock had underperformed the market over the past one month till 28 December 2015, sliding 2.44% compared with Sensex's 0.36% fall. The scrip had also underperformed the market in past one quarter, declining 12% as against Sensex's 1.63% rise.

The large-cap company has equity capital of Rs 489.52 crore. Face value per share is Rs 2.

As per reports, the Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) under the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has deferred terms of reference (ToR) for Bharat Heavy Electricals' (Bhel) Yadadri thermal power project in Telangana due to ecological concerns. An NGO had raised concerns on the tributary of the Krishna River flowing through the project's site in October 2015, and the answers provided on the issue by Telangana State Power Generation Corporation (TSGENCO) were verbal and unclear, reports suggested.

It may be recalled that Bhel had announced on 2 June 2015, about securing the single-largest order in its history from TSGENCO, for setting up a 4,000 megawatts (MW) (5X800 MW) supercritical thermal power project. The order valued at Rs 17950 crore is one of the highest value orders ever placed in the capital goods sector in India, Bhel said at that time.

Media reports suggested that the Rs 17950 crore Yadadri thermal power project order formed 81% of Bhel's order inflows in the first half of the current financial year.

Meanwhile, Bhel during market hours today, 29 December 2015 announced that it has commissioned another 660 megawatts (MW) supercritical thermal power plant at the upcoming 3x600 MW Prayagraj super thermal power project (STPP) at Bara in Allahabad district of Uttar Pradesh. One more 660 MW unit at Lalitpur, also in Uttar Pradesh, and two units of 660 MW each at Bara are also in advanced stage of construction, Bhel said. In addition, one 500 MW unit at Anpara thermal power station in Uttar Pradesh is also nearing completion, the company added.

Bhel has already commissioned 4,410 MW of power plants in the utility sector during the current financial year and is on track to achieve the target set by the government for the year, the company said in a statement.

Bhel reported net loss of Rs 204.90 crore in Q2 September 2015 compared with net profit of Rs 124.84 crore in Q2 September 2014. Net sales declined 3.2% to Rs 5834.95 crore in Q2 September 2015 over Q2 September 2014.

Bhel is the largest engineering and manufacturing enterprise in India in the energy related/infrastructure sector. The company caters to the core sectors including power, transmission, industry, transportation, renewable energy, oil & gas and defence.

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