Lanco to set up two 76-Mw projects in Uttarakhand

New Delhi: About Rs 1,000 crore will be invested on the projects in Rudraprayag.

Lanco Hydro Energy Pvt Ltd, a Lanco Group company, is setting up two hydel projects of 76 Mw each with a total investment of over Rs 1,000 crore in Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand.

While the company is setting up one project at Phata Byung area on the banks of the Mandakini river with an investment of Rs 484 crore, another project is coming in the Rambara area, also on the Mandakini river, with an investment of nearly Rs 490 crore.

The detailed project report (DPR) on both the dams had been submitted to the government, company officials said. These are run-of-the-river type hydel power projects, and are likely to be completed by 2011.

However, the project officials said they were awaiting environmental clearance from the Ministry of Environment and Forests.

For the construction of the Phata Byung project, a 9.4-km tunnel is also being built as its power house will be underground. Similarly, the Rambara project will have a 7 km long tunnel.

The company officials said there would be no displacement due to the construction of the projects in the area.

The projects were allotted through the competitive bidding route and the project development agreements have been signed with the Uttarakhand government. Survey and investigation activities have been initiated for the projects.

In addition to these projects, Lanco is also setting up couple of hydel projects at Sikkim and Himachal Pradesh. It is developing a total of 800 Mw of power in the country in hydro sector.

The hydro-electricity scenario in Uttarakhand is improving gradually with the government already identifying 20,000 Mw of hydro-electricity potential in the state.

Altogether, 12,784 Mw of hydel projects are in different stages of implementation in the state with the government shortly commissioning its Maneri Bhali Phase-II hydro project (304 Mw) on the river Bhagirathi in Uttarkashi district.

The government is expecting a total investment of Rs 65,000 crore in various hydel projects in the state.