SJVNL's second hydro project commissioned fully

Power utility Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd (SJVNL) Thursday declared that its 412 MW Rampur Hydro Electric Project in Himachal Pradesh has been commissioned fully.

All the six turbine units, each of 68.67 MW, have been commissioned, chief managing director R.P. Singh said in a statement.

He said the project would generate 1,770 million units per annum, 30 percent of which would be supplied to Himachal Pradesh, the company's equity partner, in addition to 12 percent free power.

The balance power would be supplied to the northern grid states - Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Chandigarh and Delhi.

The Rampur project is a second stage development of the upstream India's largest 1,500 MW Nathpa Jhakri Hydro Power Station owned and operated by SJVNL.

The company said the Rampur project would operate in tandem with the Nathpa Jhakri plant by utilizing its tail water.

Prime Minister Narender Modi is likely to officially inaugurate the project shortly, it said.

SJVNL is a joint venture between the central and the Himachal Pradesh governments. The former holds 74.5 percent stake, while the remaining 25.5 percent is held by the state government.

However, the central government sold 10 percent equity in SJVNL in May 2010.