Navaratna company (NLC) Neyveli Lignite Corporation Limited (NLC), which comes under the Ministry of Coal, is planning to add over 6,821 megawatt (Mw) of power, with an investment of over Rs 27,740 crore in these projects.
NLC Ltd, earlier known as Neyveli Lignite Corporation, is presently operating four thermal power stations at Neyveli, Tamil Nadu, and one thermal power station at Barsingsar, Rajasthan, with a total installed capacity of 3,240 Mw. During the year, two units of TPS-II Expansion (2×250 Mw) achieved commercial operation.
- Projects for addition of around 6,821 Mw from thermal, wind and solar energy are either under construction or in the formulation stage. Work for coal-based power plants with cumulative power generation of 1,500 Mw, which will be part of this proposed addition, is expected to be ready by end of 2019.
- These include two plants – of 500 Mw each – at Neyveli, which would be ready by October 2017 and April 2018, respectively. Further, the projects also include a 500 Mw plant in Rajasthan, which would be ready by December 2019.
- NLC also said that for the Rs 14,482 crore Sirkali Thermal Power Project (3,960 Mw in two phases of 1,980 Mw each) in Sirkali, Tamil Nadu, the power purchase agreement (PPA) has been signed and it is awaiting Tamil Nadu government’s nod for land acquisition. Fuel for the project will be met from Talabira-II & III coal blocks.
- The company has plans to set up a 1,000 Mw thermal power plant as a second expansion to the existing TPS-II at Neyveli.
Inorganic growth
As part of its plans to acquire power assets of about 3,000 Mw by 2025, NLC entered into a memorandum of understanding with Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) for acquisition of 2×600 Mw Raghunathpur Thermal Power Station set up by DVC in West Bengal, through a joint-venture company to be formed with an equity participation of DVC and NLC in the ratio of 26 per cent and 74 per cent, respectively.
- SBI Capital Markets Ltd (SBI Caps) was jointly appointed by DVC and NLC to carry out necessary due diligence studies and also to advice both the parties on the acquisition process. SBI Caps has arrived at Rs 7,547 crore as the project cost. The company has also forwarded proposal to Ministry of Coal for sanction.
