L&T Group's Nabha Power shuts 700 MW unit due to coal shortage

L&T Group firm Nabha Power Ltd (NPL) today said it has been forced to shut a 700 MW unit of Rajpura thermal power station due to shortage of coal.

NPL, which has been supplying power to Punjab from Rajpura plant since 2014, shut down unit-2 of 700 MW on June 3, 2018 due to acute shortage of coal, a company statement said.

Earlier, unit-1 of 700 MW was shut from April 4-13 this year due to shortage of the dry fuel. The plant has two units of 700 MW each.

According to the statement, the present crisis was triggered by disruption in the supply of coal rakes to the plant. Against a daily requirement of 4 rakes of domestic coal, NPL has been receiving only 1-2 rakes per day in recent times.

NPL has been facing coal crisis since last year forcing it to operate the plant at critical levels of coal stocks i.e. less than 7 days. It was forced to shut down both units alternatively for 54 days during September to November 2017.

The company said these shutdowns were caused primarily because of Coal India restricting supplies to 75 per cent of the contracted commitments and according preference to Central and State gencos.

The company said to mitigate the present crisis, immediate actions need to be taken to allocate additional coal required to run the plant, specifically by removing the 75 per cent restriction, and to allocate adequate number of rakes to ensure smooth supplies.

It said NPL, being a Case 2 Project (unlike an IPP) is created and sustained by and for the sole benefit of Punjab. It should be accorded parity in allocation of coal and despatches of rakes at par with Government powerhouses, it said.