Mytrah Energy has bagged a 220 MW wind power project from the Andhra Pradesh government.
The project will be installed in Kurnool district and is expected to be commissioned within next 18 months.
Mytrah has built an operating portfolio of 543 MW across seven wind rich states in a span of four years.
According to company, it has 300 MW under construction and 3,500 MW of identified projects in the pipeline.
Mytrah Energy ltd has received a 220 MW Wind Power project from the Andhra Pradesh Government.
The project will be installed in Kurnool district and is expected to be commissioned in 18 months.
Mytrah energy currently has an operating portfolio of 543MW across seven wind rich states.
In addition, the company has 300MW projects under construction and 3,500MW of identified projects in the pipeline.
Andhra Pradesh Government signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs for generation of 4,000 MW of wind power and 200 MW of hybrid power in the State during the first Renewable Energy Global Investors Meet and Expo (RE-INVEST).
Andhra Pradesh Government also policies for the wind and solar power projects.
According to the State Government, around Rs 8.5 billion investment is expected in the transmission & distribution and a huge investment in solar power projects.
The State Government has assured the green energy investors speedy clearances, several exemptions, faster execution schemes, vast land bank, committed bureaucracy and political will for the effective and efficient development of Renewable Energy Projects in the State.
The State Government has proposed the investors to enter into tripartite agreements with the State Discoms and State Government.
Andhra Pradesh government will soon sign a memorandum of understanding with the government of UK for collaboration on energy efficiency and low-carbon growth.
The MoU will see UK extend technical support for the state to implement the best practices vis-a-vis energy efficiency and conservation.
With the assistance of the British High Commission, AP government is also preparing a comprehensive roadmap for improving energy efficiency, said the Chief Secretary and State Energy Conservation Mission (SECM) Chairman, Prasanna Kumar Mohanty.
The Andhra Pradesh Government is working on modalities to offer incentives to industries who bring about savings in their process through energy efficiency measures.
A Green Factory Code will also be shortly announced whose objective is to encourage savings in high energy consuming industrial establishments.
During the Fifth State Energy Conservation Mission meeting held here today, P.K.Mohanty, State Chief Secretary, highlighted the importance of energy saving and various measures initiated by the Government.
During the meeting, he said, “Energy intensity, which is measure of energy required for unit of GDP growth in India is twice that of other developed countries. Reducing energy intensity must be our top priority by improving energy efficiency.”
As per the integrated energy policy of the planning commission, the electricity saving potential per year on demand side in India is about 15 per cent (15 billion units) of the total electricity demand. By improving efficiency and bringing down losses, a significant demand-supply gap could be met, he said.
The State Government expects to facilitate the addition of about 1000 mw of wind energy and 500 mw of solar energy every year during the XII Plan period.
The Government is planning to utilise the entire force of self help groups for creation of awareness about energy efficiency programmes. The State has about 10 lakh self help groups with 1.2 crore women members.
A memorandum of understanding with the UK Government will be signed shortly for sharing global best practices in energy savings. And a comprehensive roadmap for energy efficiency improvement is under preparation.
As a part of Government move to encourage energy saving, the Confederation of Indian Industry has been requested to institute awards for industries who adopt best energy efficient management practices.
A Japanese company has made a baseline study in Cherlapally industrial estate area on energy efficiency measures. In about six months, the model practiced here is planned to be replicated in other industrial areas of the State.
The Mission has come out with broad areas of savings sector wise. As per the Mission’s calculations, there is potential to save about 15,105 million units across domestic, industrial, Government and local bodies and in agriculture sectors.
The public hearing on the proposed expansion of Narla Tatarao Thermal Power Station (NTTPS) scheduled to be held on Friday is going to give some tense moments for officials and engineers of AP Power Generation Corporation Limited (AP-GENCO) and NTTPS as several villages have passed resolutions against the project fearing a spurt in environmental pollution and represented their grievances to the District Collector M. Raghunandana Rao and Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board (APPCB) demanding that the project should be stalled.
The APPCB was to conduct the public hearing in September last but had to postpone it due to protests against bifurcation of the State.
The NTTPS has six units of 210 MW each and one 500-MW unit and it is the proposed expansion of its capacity by 800 MW that has stirred the Hornet’s nest in its conceptual stage itself. The proposed unit is coal-based and its requirement is 3.95 MTPA to be sourced from Madhya Pradesh and its capital cost was pegged at nearly Rs.5,290 crore.
The people of Guntupalli, Kethanakonda, Kotikalapudi and other villages situated in close proximity to the power plant have resolved in their meetings to oppose the expansion project on the ground that it will aggravate pollution, and dismissed the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) made by Hyderabad - based Ramky Enviro Engineers Limited (REEL) as a farce.
Their argument is that the scientists and engineers who made the field studies commissioned by REEL presented a distorted picture of the actual situation prevalent in their villages and that the huge quantities of fly-ash spewed into the air have been damaging crops in more than 5,000 acres and the new unit will only make matters worse. Besides, the ash-pond is blamed for contamination of groundwater.
Obtaining public consent on Friday is going to be an uphill task as people are upset with the Government’s alleged negligence in addressing their concerns.
Source
The shortage of coal supply from the Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) following the incessant rains during the monsoon season and the frequent tripping of power stations had forced the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC), Ramagundam, lag behind in power generation during this financial year of 2013-14.
Against the target of generating 15,286 million units of power till January 1, 2014 (during the nine months period of the financial year), the NTPC could generate only 14,410 million units.
During the year 2012-13, the NTPC generated 20,785 million units of power against the target of generating 20,448 MU. Following its performance, the NTPC was fixed a target of generating 20,708 million units during the year 2013-14. However, it was short of 876 MU during the nine month period.
In the coming three months, NTPC Ramagundam had to achieve the remaining target by generating more than 2000 MU of power every month.
However, frequent tripping of power stations had become a big cause of concern for the management to achieve the targeted power generation and it would be forced to generate only 1800 MU to 1900 MUs in a month.
Freshly, the power generation was stalled at the 500 MWs fifth unit power station following the technical snag on Sunday.
The officials are taking all measures to restore power generation by rectifying faults on a war-footing.
Sources said that the delay in renovation and modernisation of all power stations is causing frequent tripping and affecting power generation.
However, they add that the NTPC management would definitely achieve the target before the completion of the financial year.
The State Civil Supplies department has got a solar power plant atop its building in the city. It is a first of its kind in the Government sector.
The Minister D. Sridhar Babu inaugurated the newly installed 20 KWp plant. It will approximately save 3,000 units every month for the department.
The life of the plant is 25 years and payback period about four year. It is estimated to save roughly about Rs 50 lakh for the rest of the period.
The project was executed by Sun Technologies. The company is into promoting solar energy for homes, agriculture, industries and institutions.
Bhagyanagar India Ltd has commissioned a 5 MW solar power photovoltaic plant at Munipally in Medak district of Andhra Pradesh, taking its installed solar power generation capacity up to 10 MW.
“This unit has been set up with an investment of Rs 29 crore. We have tied up supply of power to third parties at Rs 6 a unit with Global Energy Power Trade. In addition, we plan to make use of renewable purchase obligation,” Narendra Surana, Managing Director of Bhagyanagar India, told.
With the commissioning of this 5 MW unit, implemented by Surana Ventures, a group company, the total installed capacity of the company’s solar power plants has gone up to 10 MW. The first 5 MW power project was commissioned in Gujarat.
The company is setting up two more solar power plants of 5 MW capacity each in the State.
The first one will be commissioned in Medak district before February. The second project of 5 MW relates to the Andhra Pradesh Government’s offer for developers to set up solar power plants in the State. This project will come up at Vikarabad with an investment outlay of Rs 30 crore. The AP Transco, which is the nodal agency for the project implementation, is offering Rs 6.49 per unit.
“In a full year of operation, a 5 MW solar PV unit generate revenues of about Rs 6-7 crore. The tariff offer of Rs 6 a unit is less. But given the current circumstances, we preferred to go ahead and sign up for supply. The ideal price is about Rs 7 per unit,” he said.
A roof top, solar photovoltaic power plant has been commissioned at the Sri Vishnu Educational Society, Bhimavaram Campus in West Godavari district.
The Vice-Chairman and Managing Director of the New and Renewable Energy Development Corporation of Andhra Pradesh, M. Kamalakar Babu commissioned the plant on Saturday, which has an installed capacity to generate around 3 lakh units per year.
The 200 kWp grid-tied unit has the capacity to produce 820 units per day average. However, in summer, the peak capacity of 1000 units can be generated while during rainy season, the minimum units produced would be around 600 per day. K.V. Vishnu Raju, Chairman of the Educational Society, said the installed project will meet about 10 per cent of the campus power requirement in base case i.e. 10 per cent of energy shall be off settled in the power imported from the grid and diesel generator.
The total project cost is Rs 2.6 crore. Of this, 30 per cent was obtained as grant from the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy as capital subsidy.
The remaining has been funded by the Vishnu Educational Society, he said in a press release.
The break even for the project is four-five years.
The power plant has been designed, supplied, installed and commissioned by Varshini Power Projects, Hyderabad. It is the biggest solar power plant in the district as well as the biggest roof top project under APEPDCL, the release said. Recently, the educational society also installed a solar PV plant on the rooftop of its engineering college in Narsapur, Medak district near Hyderabad.
Mytrah Energy Ltd has added wind power generation capacity of about 150 MW in three southern States of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
This has increased its installed wind power generation capacity from 309.9 MW to 459.9 MW.
The wind power generation company based in Hyderabad and listed on the Alternative Investment Market of (AIM) of London Stock Exchange is implementing wind farms with total capacity of 238.2 MW at three locations at Burugula (37.4 MW) in Andhra Pradesh, Savalsang (100.3 MW) in Karnataka and Vagrarai (100.5 MW) in Tamil Nadu.
The company has commissioned the additional capacity at these sites. All the three projects are being commissioned on a rolling basis with the stabilisation process being conducted throughout the first quarter of 2014. With the completion of these three projects, the installed capacity of Mytrah Energy will go up from 309.9 MW now to 548.1 MW.
According to the company listing in the AIM, the entire new capacity will be able to capture the benefit of 2014 wind season.
Burugula and Savlsang are Mytrah’s first two self-development projects constructed on the company’s land with Gamesa. This provides the company with diversification when combined with its turnkey agreement with Suzlon.
The other project in Tamil Nadu at Vagarai is another self-development project with Regen and will be Mytrah’s first project where the output will be sold under third-party sale agreements.
Vagarai is expected to be one of the Group’s highest performing sites with an expected plant load factor of 31 per cent.
Infrastructure firm NCC has signed a detailed term sheet to sell its thermal power assets to Singapore global utilities services firm Sembcorp, moving a step closer to a definitive agreement, said two people aware of the development.
The development comes days after France's power GDF Suez agreed to buy a 74% stake in Meenakshi Energy, possibly indicating revival of interest among global investors in Indian infrastructure.
The sources said NCC and Sembcorp agreed on a broad framework to determine premiums to be paid on attainment of milestones.
They expect a definitive agreement and a final deal over the next six to eight weeks. NCC is developing a 1,320MW coal-fired power project at Krishnapatnam in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh in a joint venture with Gayatri Projects, another Hyderabad-based infrastructure firm. NCC holds 55% stake in the project.
Sembcorp proposes to pay around 500 crore to buy the stake from NCC and invest more in phases. The premium payments will be made over the next few years based on milestones like project completion, fuel linkages and power purchase agreements. NCC will continue as the EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) contractor.
Confirming a detailed term sheet with Sembcorp, KV Rao, CEO of NCC Infrastructure Holdings, the holding company of NCC for BOT road and power assets, told ET that he expects a definitive agreement with Sembcorp by January next year. Sembcorp did not respond to an E&Y mail seeking details on the agreement with NCC.
PwC's energy, utilities and mining leader Kameswara Rao said the structuring of the deals is "understandable and bridges the gap between long-term expectations and the more immediate concerns of project delivery risks".
If it fructifies, the deal will make it the third major investment in India for Sembcorp, which had reported revenues of S$10.2 billion ( 48,000 crore) in fiscal 2012, and its second in India's power sector. Sembcorp bought a 49% stake in a 1,320MW power project being developed by Thermal Powertech of Gayatri Projects for 1,042 crore in 2010. Earlier in November 2009, it had bought 40% stake in a marine offshore venture of Kakinada Seaports.
The deal also helps Sembcorp increase its Indian power portfolio to 2,640MW, at Krishnapatnam in Andhra Pradesh, making it the third largest global investor in the Indian energy sector after Hong Kong's CLP Holdings and United States-based AES Corporation.
Airports in India are increasingly looking to solar power. After Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) announcing last week that it had set up a 2.14 MW solar power plant, Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) has said it too has set up a 1 MW plant.
Though the plant at CIAL is up and running, it is yet to be formally inaugurated. And airports of Bangalore and Hyderabad are also keen on tapping solar energy, with Hyderabad closer to a decision for a 5 MW system.
Unlike Delhi airport’s solar plant, the 1 MW facility at Cochin is spread over three locations within the airport, part of it on rooftops.
None of them is on the ‘airside,’ or on the land abutting the runway, which is where most airports abroad have their solar power systems. A 320 kW plant has been put up on the vast roof of the MRO hangar of CIAL.
Another 550 kW is ground-mounted, and the rest is installed on the roof of the training centre building, the CIAL official said.
However, the official of CIAL said the airport has plans to expand solar capacity to 10 MW, and the future projects will come up on the airside.
Incidentally, CIAL had first put up a 100 kW system, which was built for them by Kolkata-based Vikram Solar. The 1 MW plant was put up by Emvee Photovoltaic of Bangalore.
Airports and hotels typically have large area of land and are a very attractive market-base for solar, says K.M. Santosh, Managing Director, Enerparc Energy Pvt Ltd, the Indian subsidiary of the German company of the same name, a global pioneer in putting up solar plants at airports. The solar plant in the Delhi airport was put up by Enerparc.
The solar plant in the Delhi airport was put up by Enerparc. Where there is possibility of the airport availing itself of depreciation benefits, solar is particularly attractive, he says.
Today, a 1 MW solar power plant costs between Rs 6 and 7 crore and typically generates 1.5 million units of electricity a year.
Hyderabad-based Meenakshi Energy and Infrastructure Holdings Pvt Ltd (MEIHPL), which is part of the Meenakshi Group, will retain 26 per cent in the project. MEPL comprises 300 MW of operational capacity and 700 MW under construction at Krishnapatnam port in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh.
The Meenakshi Group believes that the partnership with GDF SUEZ will be mutually beneficial. The size of GDF SUEZ’s global portfolio will allow MEPL to benefit from a broad multi-disciplinary expertise and to take leverage from GDF SUEZ’s strong global governance. It is expected to provide a stable and solid framework that creates consistency and builds trust for stakeholders.
KPMG India acted as exclusive financial advisors for Meenakshi Group on this transaction.
The sun will soon begin to illuminate a few government hospitals in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, thanks to the solar power initiatives taken by the New and Renewable Energy Development Corporation of Andhra Pradesh (NREDCAP) with the active support of the Central and state governments.
As part of promoting non-conventional energy, governments would provide funds to install solar power equipment soon in the city government hospitals like Osmania, Gandhi, Fever and Niloufer Hospitals with a main objective to reduce pressure on conventional sources of energy.
NREDCAP managing director M Kamalakar Babu said that in Osmania General Hospital, solar power equipment generating 500 and 400 kw would be installed while 500 kw in Gandhi Hospital, 100 kw in Fever Hospital and 150 kw in Niloufer Hospital would be installed. Solar photovoltaic devices will be installed not only for lighting requirements but also for other medical uses.
The decision to install solar power equipment in these government hospitals was taken due to heavy consumption of power as thousands of patients keep thronging to these hospitals from various parts of the state for medical treatment on daily basis. As there is a huge gap between demand and supply, generating solar energy will be very useful, with about 300 sunny days in a year, Babu said.
The hospitals will not be completely dependent on the solar power, as the regular supply through power discoms will still be there. As long as the sun lasts, the supply will be through solar panels, after which a battery backup of four to eight hours would still be there to face emergency blackouts, he added.
Other major government hospitals and Primary Health Centres (PHCs) will be provided with solar power equipment soon. There are similar proposals to install solar equipment in Social and BC Welfare hostels as well as in Rajiv Vidya Mission and Kasturba Gandhi Balika hostels. Proposals have been sent to the government for getting the nod. The government is keen on promoting solar power and NREDCAP is focussing on promotion of energy conservation in a big way, he added.
The NREDCAP has also conducted energy audit of various government buildings for arriving at the power requirements and the equipment needed. Proposals have been sent for the sanction of 30 per cent Central government subsidy on the solar energy equipment as applicable to government buildings, Babu said.
New and Renewable Energy minister Farooq Abdullah today said that Vijayawada and Mahabubnagar in Andhra Pradesh will be developed as Solar cities.
"Two cities namely Vijayawada and Mahabubnagar have been identified in Andhra Pradesh for developing them as solar cities," Abdullah informed the Rajya Sabha.
He said that a solar city aims to reduce a minimum of ten per cent of its projected demand of conventional energy through generation from renewable energy installations and energy efficiency measures.
"The master plan for Vijayawada has been prepared with an estimated cost of Rs 256.50 crore for various projects," the minister said adding that the time required depends on the interest and efforts taken by the city and availability of funds.
The various projects are on solar grid connected and off grid applications, waste to energy, bio-methanization, solar water heating systems, reduction in connected load in municipal areas, awareness and capacity building and others, he added.
Abdullah said that for Vijayawada solar city, an amount of Rs 12.20 lakh has been released so far for preparation of the master plan, setting up of a solar city cell and promotional activities.
"Mahabubnagar municipality is yet to take action for preparation of the master plan," Abdullah added.
The Union Government’s decision to declare Indirasagar Polavaram as a project of national importance is expected to speed up implementation of the multi-purpose venture. But, many hurdles, including inter-State disputes, resolution of pending cases, land acquisition and submergence issues, have to be crossed before it becomes a reality.
Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde’s declared Thursday that it would be treated as a national project, soon after the Union Cabinet approved a draft Bill to carve out a separate Telangana State .
The long-pending irrigation-cum-hydel power generation project, which has gone through several changes over the past few decades, seeks to stabilise cultivation in at least four districts. National project status means it will have the Centre’s financial support and facilitation, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and the soon-to-be carved out Telangana and Seemandhra regions will be interested parties.
The inter-State project on the Godavari river was conceived as a part of recommendations of the Godavari Water Disputes Tribunal award in 1980. While Andhra Pradesh, the then undivided Madhya Pradesh and Orissa (Odisha) executed an agreement in 1980 to enable clearance of Polavaram project to be undertaken by Andhra Pradesh, there were several inter-State concerns, including submergence of hundreds of villages.
The project, revised several times, has been estimated to cost Rs 16,010.45 crore as on 2010-11. To come up at Polavaram mandal of West Godavari district, the project seeks to provide irrigation to about nearly 3 lakh hectares in East Godavari, Vishakhapatnam, West Godavari and Krishna districts. It is proposed to install hydel power generation capacity of 960 MW, apart from providing 24 TMC of drinking and industrial water supply to Vishakhapatnam township and steel plant, and diversion of 80 TMC waters to river Krishna.
The ultimate irrigation potential of the project is 4.368 lakh hectares and annual power generation will be 2,369.43 million units. In addition, 540 villages will also be provided with drinking water facilities in the command area.
The project will interconnect the Godavari and Krishna rivers. It envisages transfer of 80 TMC surplus waters of the Godavari Krishna River, which will be shared between Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra .
Thanks to a project of Premier Solar Systems, headed by Surendra Pal Singh and his son Chiranjeev Singh Saluja, 57 villages near Visakhapatnam have finally got electricity.
Recently, the group was in the news for winning the International Solar Project, 2013 Award, given by the Renewable Energy World organisation, for its work in helping these villages, many residents of which had not even seen a light bulb, get electricity.
Surendra says, “Most of us take electricity for granted, but when you visit these villages, then you realise what you have got.”
Though the project was a government initiative that the company won a tender for, Surendra Pal Singh adds that the “the entire experience was gratifying”.
“According to the project, each village or hamlet was provided with a 2 kilowatt or 18 kilowatt solar array,” says Surendra.
“The stand-alone systems come with batteries. The batteries are charged for the entire day and when evening sets in people can use lights for five hours,” he says, adding, “We were asked to work on a support system, wherein people would get electricity for five hours, from six in the evening to 11.”
The project has alternately provided these villages with street lights, depending on the size of the village.
“This project will always remain special,” he says. But there were problems too. “The connectivity to these villages was anything but easy. We had to pass forests, cross rivers, ponds, marshes and then climb mountains. People had to carry the material on their heads or on huge poles and get across.”
There was another problem, “Most of the paths to the villages were through Naxal-affected areas. But no harm was done,” he says.
Surendra adds, “It feels surreal. To know that we have played a part in helping someone is a feeling beyond words.” He says that the group is also working on electrification of 39 villages near Khammam and Adilabad, apart from working on an island near Uganda.
“People need to realise the importance of solar energy. I see homes even in cities tapping solar energy in the next five years,” adds Surendra.
GMR Infrastructure has sought Rs 480 crore for recovering fixed costs for its 388.5-megawatt (Mw) gas-based power plant from the Andhra Pradesh Central Power Distribution Company, sources said.
The power plant at Vemagiri in the state has been idling for lack of gas from Reliance Industries's KG-D6 block since the start of this financial year.
It's plant load factor (a measure of capacity use) has been zero for months now, leading to losses. Consequently, GMR Infra is seeking recovery of fixed costs such as capital costs and maintenance from the state distribution company (discom), which buys power from it.
While the discom could not be reached for comments, GMR said denied to comment on the development.
Many off-take contracts allow for recovery of fixed costs if the buyer fails to purchase power from the project. Reasons for not buying power can range from lack of demand to the finances of the discom. In such cases, the discom pays to ensure the power plant does not go into losses.
The Andhra Pradesh power distribution companies are proposing another power tariff hike with effect from April next year. If the hike is cleared by the AP Electricity Regulatory Commission (APERC), Kiran Kumar Reddy will go down in history as one chief minister who hiked electricity tariffs thrice in three years.
Sources said stung by APERC's refusal to allow them to levy fuel surcharge adjustment ( FSA) from customers, the discoms are preparing another round of tariff hike to the tune of Rs 8,488 crore. If the state government offers similar amount of subsidy that it had extended last financial year, the burden on the power consumers would be around Rs 2,200 crore, which would mean a hike of about 10%. For the current financial year, despite a subsidy of Rs 5,530 crore extended by the state, the discoms passed on the burden of Rs 6,500 crore on the consumers which resulted in a 27.8 % hike in tariff.
APTransco chairman and managing director Suresh Chanda submitted the revenue requirement proposals related to transmission of power to the APERC on Saturday. Discoms, which were supposed to have submitted their proposals to APERC by November 30 had sought an extension of one month. They have been given time until December 10. "Discoms will present their proposals by this weekend," said a senior official in the energy department.
According to sources, tariff hike for the next year is likely to be between 10 to 27% for different categories. However, this will be finalized by APERC after it holds public hearings in January 2014.
Although discoms have indicated Rs 11,600-crore revenue gap for the year 2014-15 , the utilities were asked to prune some of their expansion projects to reduce the overall revenue gap. The state government's nonpayment of full subsidy amount to Discoms for supplying free power for agriculture constitutes a major deficit. Consequently , the total losses of the four discoms have now touched an all-time high of Rs 27,000 crore.
AP Generation Corporation (APGenco) also asked for a price revision for the power supplied from its thermal and hydel stations. State owned APGenco supplies more than 60% power to the state at the cost plus method thus reducing the burden on the state exchequer. For the years 2014-19 , APGenco requested APERC a 4% tariff hike citing rising fuel and maintenance costs.
