KSEB signs power purchase deal with Neyveli Lignite

Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) has signed an agreement with Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) for purchase of power from the latter’s TPS II Expansion Project.

The project has an installed capacity of 500 megawatts and the agreement was signed for Kerala’s share of 14 per cent, which works out to 70 MW. The others entitled to a share from the project are Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry.

The agreement was signed by Mr J.N. Prasanna Kumar, Chairman and Managing Director of NLC, and Mr Rajiv Sadanandan, Chairman, KSEB, in the presence of the Minister for Electricity, Mr A.K. Balan. The power from the project is slated to be made available in 2009 with an expected cost of Rs 3 per unit.

Mr Balan said that the State was entitled to 265 MW of power from the original installed capacity of 2,520 MW of TPS II project. The State had been getting at least 235 MW, which had now come down to 165 MW.

Mr Prasanna Kumar said that some problems relating to mining land and heavy rains had resulted in shortage in the availability of lignite. The situation was expected to improve shortly and Kerala would start getting its full share of power, he added.

KSEB had earlier signed an agreement for purchase of power from the Simhadri project of National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC).

The board has sought 200 MW from the project. It has signed another agreement for purchase of 122 MW from the project being jointly implemented by the Tamil Nadu Government and NLC at Tuticorin.