BHEL bags Rs 200 cr order to upgrade Chilla hydro project

State-owned engineering firm BHEL on Monday said it has received an order worth Rs 200 crore for renovation, modernisation and uprating (RM&U) of Chilla Hydro Electric Plant.

Valued at over Rs 200 crore, BHEL has bagged the order from Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (UJVNL) for RM&U of the 4x36 MW Chilla HEP, the engineering firm said in a statement.

Located in Pauri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand, the plant comprises four units of 36 MW each, which will be uprated to 39 MW each, according to the statement.

The units at Chilla HEP have been in operation for more than 35 years and RM&U of these units will result in upgradation of output capacity, additional generation and efficiency improvement, in addition to leading to better plant availability and life extension of equipment.

In the present scenario of resource constraints in power sector, RM&U of existing hydroelectric projects is considered to be the best option, as it is cost effective and requires much lesser time than setting up of greenfield hydro power projects.

BHEL's scope of work in the order includes design, engineering, manufacturing, supply, dismantling, erection, testing and commissioning of critical parts of Turbines, Generators, Governors, Controls & Instrumentation, Protection and Balance of Plant (BoP).

Major equipment for the contract will be manufactured and supplied by BHEL's plants at Bhopal, Jhansi, Rudrapur and Bengaluru, thereby providing impetus to the government's 'Make in India' initiative. The installation activities on-site will be carried out by the company's power sector - Northern Region division, Noida, the statement said.

It also recently secured an order from Kerala State Electricity Board for R&M and uprating of Kuttiyadi HEP from 3x25 MW to 3x27.5 MW.

BHEL is presently executing hydroelectric Projects of more than 2,900 MW across the country, in addition to 3,184 MW abroad, which includes 2,220 MW in Bhutan and 900 MW in Nepal.

Significantly, more than 500 hydroelectric generating sets of various ratings have been ordered on BHEL with a cumulative capacity of more than 30,000 MW, including 6,680 MW for overseas projects.

Its hydro plants are operational in India and across the world, including countries such as Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Bhutan, Malaysia, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Rwanda, Thailand, New Zealand, Nepal and Vietnam.