The sun, a school and a farewell to power cuts in Tamil Nadu...

 

Students and teachers of Ramaratnam Nursery and Primary School in Mylapore have not had to bear the brunt of power cuts for almost one year, all thanks to the solar power plant installed on the roof of the building.

The school housed in the Madras Sanskrit College has installed an ‘On Grid’ type solar plant in which electricity produced during the day is directly converted into AC power and distributed to the electricity grid of Tangedco. S. Harish, CEO, Future Renewable Energy Infrastructure Private Limited, said under the ‘on grid’ system, the solar power produced could not be stored like the ‘off grid’ system, where it could be stored in a battery. The former was suggested to the school authorities because the school functions during day time. Also, the ‘on grid’ system is 30 per cent cheaper than the ‘off grid’ system.

The 7 Kilo Watt (KW) solar power plant, including the inverter, cost Rs. seven lakh (including the subsidy of Rs. 2 lakh) with the school likely to recover the investment within seven years, Mr. Harish added. The solar power plant has not only helped the school authorities deal with power cuts, but has also brought down power consumption by 30-40 per cent.

Subramaniam, manager of the school, said the institution, which used to previously consume an average of 2,500 units in two months managed to save around 1,000 units after the plant was installed.

B. Madhavan, a trustee of the school, said the solar plant was installed mainly to ensure students’ comfort. He said by going solar, the school was also able to fulfil its social responsibility.

Going by the success of the solar power plant installed in the school, the trustees of the Madras Sanskrit College have proposed to install an off-grid system on its premises.

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Mytrah Energy adds 150 MW wind power capacity in 3 States...

 

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.

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BHEL wins Rs 1,023 cr contract from Neyveli Lignite Corp...

 

State-run BHEL has bagged a Rs 1,023 crore contract from Neyveli Lignite Corporation for supplying turbine generator package at a thermal power project in Tamil Nadu.

"Valued at Rs 1,023 crore, the order has been secured by BHEL from Neyveli Lignite Corporation Limited (NLC), for their upcoming 1,000 MW Neyveli New Thermal Power Project (NNTPP) at Neyveli, Tamil Nadu," BHEL said in a statement.

BHEL's scope of works includes manufacture, supply, erection, testing and commissioning of steam turbine generators & auxiliaries along with associated civil works.

BHEL has earlier secured orders from NLC for their 2x500 MW Tuticorin, 2x250 MW Neyveli and 2x125 MW Barsingsar projects, the statement said.

BHEL has established the capability to deliver power plant equipment of 20,000 MW per annum.

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CERC to hear Sasan commissioning case tomorrow...

 

Electricity regulator CERC, will tomorrow, hear Western Region Load Despatch Centre's petition challenging Reliance Power's claim of commissioning the first unit of its Sasan ultra mega power project, in Madhya Pradesh.

CERC (Central Electricity Regulatory Commission) will hear issues related to commercial operation of Sasan plant, according to information available on the regulator's website.

The Western Regional Load Despatch Centre (WRLDC), which operates the power grid in the region, had questioned the start date of commercial operations at the Sasan plant, where the first 660-MW unit was commissioned in March.

Based on a petition filed by the WRLDC, the CERC had set aside a certificate issued by the independent engineer for declaration of commercial operations at the Sasan plant.

Reliance Power filed an appeal with the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL) on the grounds that CERC's order is violative of principles of natural justice and is not tenable in law.

APTEL set aside CERC's order on August 13 and directed it to decide afresh on the matter of commercial operation date.

While referring to the judgement of APTEL, WRLDC in its petition with the CERC said that since the issue of maintainability is linked with the main issue on merits, the commission can consider all issues and then come to a conclusion.

Sasan Power Ltd (SPL) is the wholly owned subsidiary of Reliance Power which is executing the 4,000 ultra mega power project. The first unit started producing power on March 30, Reliance Power said in a BSE filing on April 4.

The company is executing UMPPs in Sasan, Krishnapatnam (Andhra Pradesh) and Tilaiya (Jharkhand).

Source: Business Standard

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Cost of nuclear power proving high, Department of Atomic Energy in a fix..

 

As the cost of electricity generation by nuclear power plants, to be set up with the help of French and American companies, is turning out to be on the higher side, the Department of Atomic Energy is in a fix over how to bring down the cost.

On one hand, it is involved in hard negotiations with the companies and on the other hand, sources said, if the cost per unit turns out to be too expensive, then it may not even pursue the project with collaborators. The estimated cost by the DAE for Jaitapur Nuclear Power Plant (JNPP) in Maharashtra is around Rs 9 per unit while the cost for Mithi Virdhi nuclear power project is around Rs 12 per unit.

Currently, the DAE is in negotiations with French company Areva to build six EPR reactors of 1650 MW each at Jaitapur. Sources pointed out that initial estimates state the cost of the project to be around Rs 27-30 crore per megawatt and the cost per unit to be around Rs 9 per unit in 2021.

Speaking to reporters in Mumbai last month, R K Sinha, DAE Secretary, had said a competitive per unit tariff of Rs 6.50 has been estimated in the year of completion of Jaitapur project in 2020-21.

In the case of Mithi Virdhi project where American company Westinghouse Electric is providing AP-1000 reactors, the cost per megawatt is coming to around Rs 40 crores while the cost per unit is around Rs 12.

Although this project is yet to reach the advanced negotiations stage, the DAE has already signed an Early Works Agreement with Westinghouse Electric.

The DAE is skeptical about the proposal due to its high cost. It states that the cost per unit from the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP) unit 1 and 2 is around Rs 3.50 to Rs 4 per unit.

"If we take inflation into consideration, even then the cost is very high. We are also answerable to people. Plus, there is a lot of opposition to nuclear projects where we have foreign collaborators.

If nothing works out, then we will, perhaps, have to back out because of the high electricity generation cost from the project," a senior DAE official said.

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NHPC signs agreement with Odisha Govt, OHPC to form hydroelectric power JV...

 

State-run NHPC Ltd on Monday said it has signed an agreement with Government of Odisha and Odisha Hydro Power Corporation Limited (OHPC).

The agreement was for the purpose of formation of a Joint Venture company for implementation of six hydroelectric projects with an aggregate installed capacity of 1020 MW.

“A Promoters' Agreement has been signed on December 21, 2013 between NHPC Limited, Government of Odisha and Odisha Hydro Power Corporation Limited for formation of a Joint Venture Company for implementation of six hydroelectric projects with an aggregate installed capacity of 1020 MW,” said NHPC in a filing to BSE.

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Realities of renewable energy in India...

 

Recently the Union ministry of new and renewable energy (MNRE) asked the ministry of power (MoP) to make the Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) compliance mandatory for states if they want to avail funds for financial restructuring of their utilities.

RPOs, put simply, are the minimum percentages of the total power that electricity distribution companies and some large power consumers need to purchase from renewable energy (RE) sources. RPO creates a minimum market for renewables in the absence of pricing externalities of conventional power generation.

While the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) has set an ambitious RPO target of 15% by 2020, it is the state electricity regulatory commissions (SERC) that set year-wise targets in their respective states. While 28 out of 29 states have such targets in place for solar and non-solar sources separately, there is an increasing concern over actual compliance. Data for a few major states for the last two-three years reveals that barring utilities in states such as Karnataka, most others have failed to meet their RPO targets.

Reduction of RPO targets to accommodate the concerns of utilities has been a common measure taken by SERCs. After achieving an RPO compliance of 5.78% in Rajasthan in 2011-12, the Rajasthan ERC reduced its earlier RPO target from 8.5% to 6%. Similarly Tamil Nadu ERC reduced its RPO target from 14% to 9% despite the state utility achieving a compliance of 9.59%. Gujarat ERC allowed its distribution licensees to carry forward the shortfall for FY 2011-12 to be met in FY 2012-13. Considering the excess solar generation in Gujarat in 2012-13 (over its mandated RPO), it allowed the state utility to count this towards compliance of the non-solar RPO to remove the burden on the distribution licensee.

For FY 2010-11 and 2011-12, Maharashtra appeared to have achieved its RPO targets of 6% and 7%, respectively. However, the RPO compliance data collated by the designated state nodal agency, Maharashtra Energy Development Agency, seems to have included renewable energy units wheeled under the network under open access (OA) and credited them to the utility’s account. For 2011-12, if one does not consider units wheeled under OA, then the RPO compliance drops sharply to 4.49%. While the regulator did seek the explanation for this counting of wheeled RE towards RPO compliance from Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Co. Ltd, it did not take any further action in this matter. This issue is bound to come back when the OA consumers’ RPO compliance will be taken up.

Fortunately, there are encouraging signs with some state ERCs (Maharashtra, MP, UTs, Uttarakhand, Punjab, etc.) beginning to flex their muscles against RPO defaulters. For example, besides setting a deadline to cumulatively fulfil RPOs, Maharashtra ERC has explicitly directed that any future non-compliance would result in the ERC invoking the penal clause from their regulations. However, there are many other steps which state ERCs can proactively take to facilitate this process. An effective web-based automated monitoring and verification system for RE generation/procurement is essential to operationalize compliance reporting. While most state ERCs’ RPO regulations indicate quarterly compliance reporting, this is hardly followed up.

While India’s progress in the renewable energy sector has been impressive in the last few years and needs to be sustained in the years to come, effective implementation of the RPO framework is crucial to meet these goals.

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Vikram Solar ties up with GermanPV for supplying modules...

 

Kolkata-based Vikram Solar has tied up with Germany-based GermanPV for supplying solar modules for grid-connected solar park in the European nation.

"Vikram Solar has entered into a tie up with GermanPV, an energy solution company based out of Germany, for the supply of modules required for 2.45 megawatt (MW) grid-connected solar park constructed and commissioned in Germany.

The solar park is located at Osterburg in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany.

The complete set of solar photovoltaic (PV) modules has been supplied by Vikram Solar for this solar park which will generate enough power to sustain the demand of 1,000 households, the statement said.

The project will result in carbon dioxide savings of 1.7 ton per year approximately.

"The decision to work with Vikram Solar for this park was clear for us. Vikram has been a reliable and trustworthy partner from the first point of contact to the final construction of the park. The direct line to decision makers in Europe as well as in India has helped to realise this project on a very tight construction schedule," Tobias Sommer, Director Procurement, GermanPV, said.

"We are proud and thankful to have the chance to work with the Management of GermanPV, a team with more than 10 years of experience in the German PV sector. This park marks a milestone in the long-term partnership of the two companies and in Vikram's presence in the European PV market," Davide Marro, Head of Sales - Europe, Vikram Solar, said.

Source: Business Standard

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Jaypee set to sell two hydro power units to TAQA, Canadian pension fund...

 

The debt-laden Jaypee Group is close to selling two of its three operating hydroelectric projects to a consortium led by Abu Dhabi National Energy Co. PJSC, known as TAQA, and including a Canadian pension fund for at least $1.5 billion, according to two people close to development.

TAQA will buy a 51% stake in the projects, with a Canadian pension fund purchasing 39% and IDFC Alternatives Ltd, the private equity arm of infrastructure finance company IDFC Ltd, taking the remaining 10%, said the two people, who both spoke on condition of anonymity.

The transaction, which will raise funds for the Jaypee Group to pare more than Rs.50,000 crore of debt, could help accelerate consolidation in India’s beleaguered power sector, burdened by debt, delays in project approvals and fuel shortages. Slowing economic growth has hit power demand from industrial consumers in some parts of the country.

“The documentation is in progress. This will be the first exposure of this large Canadian pension fund in India,” said one of the people.

The person did not reveal the name of the Canadian pension fund.

It’s not Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), which forged a $200 million venture with real estate developer Shapoorji Pallonji Group last month to invest in commercial real estate in India, said the two people cited earlier. CPPIB took an 80% stake in the venture with Shapoorji Pallonji holding the rest.

The transaction, one of the largest hydro power deals in the country, is likely to be signed by this month end or early next month. The formal closure of the deal, with all regulatory approvals, may take up to three months, the two people said.

The Economic Times reported on 9 September that the Abu Dhabi Water and Electric Authority had emerged as the frontrunner to buy the two power assets from Jaiprakash Power Ventures Ltd, a part of the Jaypee Group, and that TAQA will possibly be the vehicle for the acquisition.

The power plants on the block are the 300 megawatts (MW) Baspa II and 1,000MW Karcham Wangtoo projects located in Himachal Pradesh.

“The Jaypee Group would be selling its 100% stake in two power plants and the proceeds would be used for bringing down the debt. This would be a landmark deal,” said one of the persons cited above.

Originally, the Jaypee Group wanted to sell off all its three projects, including the 400MW Vishnuprayag project, but the plant suffered damage in the cloudburst and subsequent floods that hit Uttarakhand in June.

Consulting firm EY, formerly known as Ernst and Young, is advising the Jaypee Group. A spokeswoman for EY declined to comment for this story. Jaypee Group chairman Manoj Gaur also declined to comment. “We cannot comment on market speculations,” a TAQA spokesman said. A spokesperson for IDFC declined to comment.

In September, the Jaypee Group sold its cement plant in Gujarat to UltraTech Cement Ltd for Rs.3,800 crore as part of the efforts to reduce debt.

On 4 October, a Jaypee Group spokesman told that the group was committed to reducing its Rs.56,000 crore of debt by Rs.15,000 crore by end of the current fiscal year. So far, the group has reduced about Rs.5,300 crore of debt through the sale of the cement plant and from internal accruals.

TAQA, which means energy in Arabic, is no stranger to India. Apart from holding a majority stake in Nagarjuna Construction Co. Ltd’s Himachal Pradesh power plant, the company also operates a 250MW lignite-based power plant in the Neyveli region of Tamil Nadu and wants to scale it up to 500MW.

Rival power producers such as Nagarjuna Construction and Lanco Infratech Ltd are also in advanced talks with potential strategic and financial investors to sell majority stakes in their operational power plants as they seek to reduce debt.

In March, GMR Infrastructure Ltd sold its 70% interest in GMR Energy (Singapore) Pte Ltd to FPM Power Holdings Ltd for $600 million.

Nagarjuna Construction is in the process of reducing its exposure to the power business by selling stakes to one of the units off Singapore’s Sembcorp Industries. The company has already signed a definitive agreement with TAQA to sell its entire stake in Himachal Sorang Power Pvt. Ltd.

Lanco Infratech is in talks with potential strategic and financial investors to sell its stakes in three power projects to pare debt. Lanco Infratech had a net debt of Rs.35,835.4 crore on its books as of 30 September.

In November, G. Venkatesh Babu, managing director of Lanco Infratech, said the company management was also considering options such as inviting strategic investors, disposal of assets, and corporate debt restructuring.

“One can see a lot of action in the power sector as far as mergers and acquisitions are concerned; many PE (private equity) funds and sovereign funds are looking at the Indian power sector with a lot of curiosity as they feel valuations are attractive,” said Sanjay Sethi, executive director and head of infrastructure at Kotak Investment Bank.

In a report released on 18 December, EY said India needs 15,000-20,000MW of fresh capacity addition every year to sustain its economic growth, and to achieve this, $230 billion of investments is needed in the power sector in the next five years.

JPMorgan Asset Management invested $150 million in the Bhaskar Group’s Diligent Power Pvt. Ltd (a 2,520MW power portfolio) in May 2013. Singapore-based Sembcorp is looking to acquire a 100% stake in a 1,320MW coal-fired project in Andhra Pradesh to double its capacity in India, and French energy company GDF Suez SA has signed definitive documents to acquire a 74% stake in a 1,000MW coal-fired power project owned by Meenakshi Energy and Infrastructure Holdings Pvt. Ltd in Andhra Pradesh.

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Dubai-based group secures Rs. 1,600-crore funding for Tamil Nadu power plant...

 

Dubai-based Coal & Oil Group has received Rs. 1,600 crore in additional funding for its 1,200-MW project in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu.

"Coal & Oil Group has announced that it has secured additional funding of approximately Rs. 1,600 crore to complete its 1,200 MW Independent Power Plant (IPP), presently under construction in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu," the company said in a statement on Monday.

The Mutiara Thermal Power Plant aims to partly address the 5,000 MW power shortage in the state.

The plant will be developed by Coastal Energen Private Ltd, the power generating Flagship Company of the Coal & Oil Group.

It is also the region's second-largest private investor, with capital expenditure exceeding Rs. 6,800 crore, the statement said.

The IPP will benefit from close proximity to both a major city (Tuticorin) and major port, as well as excellent road, rail and air connectivity, it added.

"India, and particularly, the state of Tamil Nadu, is currently facing severe power shortage. Our power project will be able to partly mitigate the hardships being faced by the state. In fact, we have committed to supplying a large part of our generation to the state grid," said Ahmed Buhari, founder, president and CEO of the Coal and Oil Group.

The Mutiara power plant has obtained Rs. 5,200 crore in funding from a consortium of Indian banks led by State Bank of India (SBI).

This latest sanction will contribute to last mile funding and address cost escalation due to recent steep rupee devaluation, among other things. The power plant is slated for completion by June 2014, it further added.

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