'Arunachal will earn Rs 445 cr annually from free power'

Arunachal Pradesh will earn revenue of Rs 445 crore annually as revenue from 12 per cent free power after the commissioning of three ongoing hydropower projects in the state, Chief Minister Nabam Tuki said today.
Responding to zero-hour discussion in the house by Independent MLA Paknga Bage, Tuki said the 110 MW Pare project and 600 MW Kameng project by North East Electrical Power Corporation (NEEPCO) were expected to be commissioned by this year and next year respectively.
Work on the stalled on the 2000 MW Lower Subansiri hydro electric project would start soon, he said.
All the power developers would have to give 12 per cent free power to the state, which would get annual revenue of Rs 17 crore from the Pare project, Rs 95 crore from Kameng project and Rs 333 crore from Lower Subansiri project, Tuki said.

By harnessing all the hydropower potential, Arunachal Pradesh could be a self-reliant in the power sector and immensely benefit other states of the north east, he said.
Terming Arunachal Pradesh as the 'power house' of the country with 60,000 MW hydropower potential, Tuki said the state could meet 40 per cent power requirement of the nation.

"Arunachal, which has been depending on the Centre for all development fund, could be a donor state in future if the hydropower potential of the state are harnessed scientifically," he said.
The state hydropower policy was in tune with the central policy and the consulting policies of other states of the country, particularly Himachal Pradesh, he said.

It was the best with inbuilt incentives for local entrepreneurs and provisions for protecting the interest of the indigenous population, he added.
As an encouragement, local entrepreneurs would be exempted from providing 12 per cent free power to the state government if they execute power projects of 1-5 MW capacity, which would make them owners as well as employers.
Earlier Bage raising the issue pointed out that out of the 160 MoUs and MoAs inked for developing hydropower, a majority of the power developers had not started the execution of the projects.
Responding to this comment, Tuki said the government had already cancelled several MoUs and MoAs and also directed all the power developers to abide by the agreement executed.