New Delhi, Sep 10 (Inditop.com) About 37 applications for gas-based power plants with a total capacity of 35,000 MW are pending with the government, a senior power ministry official said Thursday.
“About 37 applications for gas-based power plants are pending with the government, the primary reason being non-availability of gas,” said Power Secretary H.S. Brahma.
Brahma said the power ministry has also asked for increase in allocation of gas in the power sector.
“We have asked for 40 mmcd of gas before 2012. If we get that, then we can generate an additional 8,000 MW by 2012,” he told reporters on the sidelines of India Electricity 2009 conference organised by Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).
According to the 11th Five-Year Plan, the government had set a target of producing about 78,000 MW by 2012. Brahma had earlier said the ministry is confident of producing at least 62,000 MW.
With this additional 8,000 MW, the government would be closer to meeting its target, he said.
Earlier in the day, Minister of State for Power Bharatsinh Solanki had said the slow pace of capacity addition in India’s power sector can be attributed to project viability, marketing risk and inadequate fuel supplies.
This is coupled with operational inefficiency, with a gap of Rs.500,000 crore in financing of capacity addition projects is a major hurdle to the growth,” Solanki said.
“In order to achieve financial closure in a time-bound manner, it is suggested to increase the exposure limit of banks and financial institutions for financing power sector companies,” Solanki added.
“The limit should be increased from 20 percent to 30 percent for individual borrowers and from 50 percent to 70 percent for group borrowers. In addition, it is suggested that ECBs by financial institutions like PFC and REC may be brought under the automatic route.”
