RPower gets CERC nod to meet new environment norms at Sasan UMPP

Reliance Power's 3,960 MW project at Sasan in Madhya Pradesh has received regulatory nod from the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission for implementing a system to control emissions and meet new environmental norms.

The CERC approval would enable the company to recover the cost of the system from its consumers, according to the company.

"Sasan Ultra Mega Power Project (UMPP) has received a specific regulatory recommendation from Central Electricity Authority for implementation of the Flue Gas Desulphurization (FGD) System to meet the new environmental norms prescribed by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC)," a company spokesperson said.

The MoEFCC had notified new environmental norms as per Environment (Protection) Amendment Rules 2015 on December 7, 2015 to minimise pollution in thermal power plants. All the thermal power plants are required to comply with new environmental norms by September 2022.

The Sasan UMPP, which has six generating units of 660 MW each, will implement the FGD system to control sulphur dioxide emissions. On implementation, the FGD system for the 3960 MW project shall be the largest and most modern FGD system in India and will lead the way for the industry to meet the environment standards, etc, the official said.

The Sasan UMPP supplies power at one of the lowest thermal power tariffs in the country at Rs 1.49 per unit to 47 crore consumers spread across seven states of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Delhi, and Uttarakhand.