Investment in Nuclear Energy Sector during the last three years for Department of Atomic Energy...

 

Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has informed that during the years 2010-11, 2011-12 and 2012-13 an estimated investment of around Rs. 74,629 crore was made in renewable energy sector.

It includes an expenditure of around Rs. 10,329 crore from Central Plan Outlay of Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Government of India.

Department of Atomic Energy has informed that total amount of investment made in the Nuclear Energy Sector over the last three years is as under:

• 2012-13 : Rs.4946 crore
• 2011-12 : Rs.4153 crore.
• 2010-11 : Rs.2540 crore

The amount is inclusive of Government Support and Internal and Extra Budgetary Resources under Demand No.5 Nuclear Power Schemes.

Department of Atomic Energy has informed that the total Government spending for the development of the Nuclear Sector over the last three years.

• 2012-13 : Rs.16456 crore
• 2011-12 : Rs.20484 crore*
• 2010-11 : Rs.12220 crore

This amount is inclusive of Plan and Non-Plan Budgetary Support and Internal and Extra Budgetary Resources under Demand No.4 Atomic Energy and Demand No.5 Nuclear Power Schemes. This also includes the expenditure incurred for the Research & Development activities carried out by various Constituent Units of the Department as well as Autonomous Bodies. Apart from the projects and schemes related to Nuclear Power Programme, the spending includes projects on radiation technologies and advanced technologies and their applications, schemes on basic and applied research and exploration, mining and milling of uranium and other fertile materials, industrial scale production of nuclear fuel and heavy water and infrastructure and housing. The activities of research-education linkage, research on cancer, cancer medicine, implementation of atomic energy in the field of agriculture, nuclear waste management are also included in the above amount.

(*This includes arrears of book adjustment of Rs 5900 crore — Interest on Heavy Water Pool Management — a departmental commercial entity.)

This was stated by Minister of State for Finance, Shri Namo Narain Meena, in written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha today.

Source

Read More...

Ming Yang Wins First 150-Megawatt Turbine Order in India...

 

China Ming Yang Wind Power Group Ltd. (MY) won a 150-megawatt order in India after becoming the first Chinese turbine maker to receive approval to sell machines in Asia’s second-biggest wind market as sales slow at home.

The project by an undisclosed developer in Maharashtra state will use 1.5-megawatt turbines, Hiren Shah, chief executive officer of Ming Yang’s local unit, Global Wind Power Ltd., said in an interview from Mumbai. The machine was approved for sale by the government-run Centre for Wind Energy Technology in October.

Chinese manufacturers such as Ming Yang, Sinovel Wind Group (601558) Co. and Xinjiang Goldwind Science & Technology Co. are seeking to diversify beyond their home market. At least 88 percent of their sales in 2012 came from China, where wind installations contracted 42 percent in the first half of this year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

In contrast, India is forecast to install 2,050 megawatts of wind capacity in 2013, surpassing the U.S. for the first time to become the world’s third-biggest market, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

Global Wind, a venture between Ming Yang and billionaire Anil Ambani’s Reliance Capital Ltd. (RCAPT), expects to get Indian approval to sell a second 1.5-megawatt turbine around mid-2014.

Ming Yang’s newer machines are able to generate more power from lower wind speeds, making them attractive to Indian wind-farm developers who are increasingly choosing turbines based on their efficiency rather than price, Shah said.

’Educated Customer’

“The customer is educated enough now, so they’re not thinking about cost per megawatt,” Shah said. “They’re thinking about the cost per unit of electricity generated.”

The biggest obstacle developers in India face is “the cost and availability of finance” with local lending rates at about 12 percent, Shah said. Purchasing Ming Yang turbines may make developers eligible for funding from Chinese banks, he said.

China Development Bank Corp. struck an agreement with Ming Yang and Reliance last year to lend as much as $3 billion for 2,500 megawatts of projects in India. Global Wind also has a preliminary agreement with the Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. for export finance, Shah said.

Global Wind is assembling turbines from mostly imported components at a facility in Silvassa, about 160 kilometers (100 miles) north of Mumbai. It also makes the biggest turbine available in India -- a 2.5-megawatt machine based on Fuhrlander AG technology that was used to build a 45-megawatt wind farm in April for Reliance Power Ltd. (RPWR), said Shah.

Source

Read More...

Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) Disbursement of Rs. 2125.5 Crores...

 

Total disbursements of Rs. 2125.50  crores have been made by Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) during the financial year 2012-13 to promote, develop and extend financial assistance for the renewable energy projects.

The details of funds allocated to IREDA and disbursements made by IREDA by way of loan for Renewable Energy Projects for the past three years and the current year is as below:

IREDA signs a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Government of India every year. The performance of IREDA is evaluated by the Ministry in consultation with the Department of Public Enterprises, on the basis of targets fixed and achievement made against the various parameters set in the MoU. The performance of IREDA on the basis of MoU has been rated as ‘Excellent’ in the year 2010-11 and ‘Very Good’ each in the year 2011-12 and 2012-13 (Provisional). Besides this, the Annual Report of IREDA is placed before the Parliament after due scrutiny in the Ministry.

(Rs. in crores)

Year	Equity support	Funds mobilized from International Line of Credits and domestic borrowing	Disbursement
2010-11	50	710.11	1224.17
2011-12	50	1744.35	1855.03
2012-13	60	1096.33	2125.5
2013-14	45	680.21	828.93

The following steps have been taken to ensure proper utilization of funds released to the borrowers by IREDA:

• Disbursement against sanction to be linked with the physical and financial progress of the project.
• Periodic inspection of projects by IREDA officials and engineers.
• Utilization Certificate by Chartered Accountant while releasing the installments of disbursement.
• Periodical audit by internal auditor.
• Formation of a Risk Management Committee for top level oversight.
• Obtaining rating from independent rating agencies for the project proposals and ongoing surveillance by them.
• Constitution of Credit Committee for inter-departmental review of Project proposals prior to sanction.
• Strengthening of recovery mechanism.

This information was given by the Minister of New and Renewable Energy Dr. Farooq Abdullah in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.

Source: PIB

Read More...

CERC releases draft multi-year tariffs for 2014-2019...

 

The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission  has released, draft regulations  which will decide the multi year power tariffs for the  years between 2014-19.

While this is the draft, it will set the basis of the  regulations that will  impact all regulated power generating & transmission  companies like NTPC, NHPC, Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam, Torrent Power etc, whose tariff rates are set to get more cheaper The main highlight of this draft is that power tariffs acc to this, are set to get cheaper.

This new draft is set to remove the tax arbitrage which existed when companies like NTPC charged a higher tax rate from its customers leading to  a tax arbitrage for NTPC alont at 500 crore a year. Norms for 2009-14 allowed utilities to retain tax benefits applicable to power projects by recovering higher tax from beneficiaries than the actual income tax paid.

However, the new norms limit the recovery of tax to the actual tax paid by utilities. Tariffs are thus set to get cheaper with lower tax arbitrage. CERC has also changed the Operating and maintenance expenses marginally, which according to analysts was  set to increase bringing in relief for power generation companies like NTPC.

However, with a marginal change in the operating and maintenance expenses, companies like NTPC will not see any major relief.

However, low increase in O&M expenses will increase  the efficiency of power companies  leading to  lower tariff rates. This time according to CERC, The incentive structure for generation projects has been changed from earlier plant based (for PAF > normative PAF of 85%) to generation linked. while NTPC is still examining this, and prima facie find it positive, it could mean better and lower tariffs going forward.

Source

Read More...

CCI imposes Rs.1,773 crore penalty on Coal India, subsidiaries...

 

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has imposed a penalty of Rs.1,773 crore on Coal India Ltd (CIL), the country’s largest coal miner and its subsidiaries (Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd, Western Coalfields Ltd and South Eastern Coalfields Ltd).

A spokesperson for the antitrust regulator said that the state-owned coal miner, the world’s largest, had been found guilty of violating section 4(2) (a) (i) of the Competition Act of 2002, which relates to abuse of a dominant position.

The case against Coal India was registered by the Maharashtra State Power Generation Co. Ltd and Gujarat State Electricity Corp. Ltd, the spokesperson said.

“CCI held that CIL through its subsidiaries operates independently of market forces and enjoys undisputed dominance in the relevant market of production and supply of non-coking coal in India. The commission inter alia also held CIL and its subsidiaries in contravention of the provisions of section 4(2)(a)(i) of the Competition Act, 2002, for imposing unfair/ discriminatory conditions in fuel supply agreements (FSAs) with the power producers for supply of non-coking coal,” a CCI release said.

“Apart from issuing a cease and desist order against CIL and its subsidiaries, CCI directed modification of FSAs in light of the findings and observations recorded in the order. The impugned clauses related to sampling and testing procedure, charging transportation and other expenses for supply of ungraded coal from the buyers, capping compensation for supply of stones, etc.,” the release further added.

Phone calls made on the mobile phones of S. Narsing Rao, chairman of CIL, and a company spokesperson remained unanswered.

“Further, for effecting these modifications in the agreements, CIL was ordered to consult all the stakeholders. CIL was also directed to ensure parity between old and new power producers as well as between private and PSU (public sector unit) power producers, as far as practicable.,” the release said.

Source

Read More...

CERC draft tariff norms spook NTPC investors...

 

At a time when elections are being fought and won or lost with the rise in electricity tariffs as a major debating point, the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission’s (CERC’s) new draft tariff rules try to ensure end-consumer benefits.

The tight operating norms for a five-year period starting from fiscal year 2015 will, however, hit the returns of regulated entities in generation and transmission. NTPC Ltd will suffer the most, with some brokerages forecasting as much as a six percentage points’ erosion in its return on equity (RoE) from the current 23%. That has clearly spooked investors, with the stock tumbling 11.26% on Tuesday.

While regulated entities such as NTPC are allowed a base RoE of 15.5%, the power producer’s returns are far in excess of that. That’s mainly owing to the incentives on tax, operational efficiency and plant availability, or readiness for production.

Under the existing norms, NTPC enjoys incentives just by ensuring a plant availability factor (PAF) of above 85%, even if its customers—typically state electricity boards—don’t buy power. According to Edelweiss Securities Ltd calculations, this could work out to be 56 paise per unit for a 1 percentage point increase in the PAF. The new rules, firstly, decree that the plant load factor (PLF), or capacity utilization, be used as the yardstick for granting incentives. Plant load factors are in any case declining owing to lower demand for power; for NTPC, capacity utilization fell to 83% in fiscal 2013 compared with 90%-plus levels five years ago. In the first two quarters of this fiscal year, PLFs fell further to less than 80%. Moreover, the new rules say that the power producer will be paid a flat rate of 50 paise as incentive for production in excess of 85% PLF.

Secondly, NTPC will also suffer from the withdrawal of tax benefits. Currently, the generator can recover higher income tax from its customers than what it has actually paid. For example, under section 80IA of income tax rules, where it paid zero income tax for 10 consecutive on new projects, NTPC was effectively able to earn a 23% RoE. CERC has said that these tax breaks should now be passed on to consumers.

Thirdly, the CERC has also lowered the heat rate standard for coal-based plants to 2,375kCal/kWh from 2,400kCal/kWh. When a power plant is more efficient its heat rate is lowered; but it is still able to charge its consumers based on the CERC standard. This yardstick has not only been lowered, power generators have also been asked to pass on a quarter of benefits gained from fuel efficiency to consumers.

CERC has a history of filing tough draft rules and then diluting them after public debate. Unless that happens this time around as well, the stock could lose further ground.

Source

Read More...