New Delhi The 12th Five-year Plan may end without any significant fresh gas-based power capacity being added in the country. The power ministry has issued a directive to all state governments and other central and state utilities asking them not to propose any new gas-based power project at least till the end of fiscal 2015.

The advisory comes as gas is in short supply domestically and the situation could worsen in coming months as production at the country’s biggest reserve, Reliance Industries’ D6 block in the Krishna-Godavari basin, is expected to fall further from already low levels.

Major power producers in the private and public sector, including Tata Power, NTPC, Torrent Power and Mahagenco, have opposed the proposal floated by the Association of Power Producers (APP) to pool domestic gas with RLNG (regasified liquefied natural gas). They have opposed the move on the ground that this would lead to higher tariffs.

In its submission to the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) on the gas pooling issue, Tata Power said that its Trombay power station was allocated 1.5 million metric standard cubic metres per day (mmscmd) when ONGC flaring first started.

New Delhi Lack of assured coal linkages may drive 18 firms to open market

As many as 18 upcoming power projects with an aggregate capacity of over 25,000 MW might be forced to violate their tariff commitments and seek a much higher price from consumers. This is because the coal ministry has rejected a request from the developers of these projects for assured coal linkages and they might have no other option but to resort to the open market for fuel.

New Delhi In what may come as a relief for power project developers, the coal ministry has directed state-owned coal companies to ensure uninterrupted fuel supply to plants commissioned till March

New Delhi The Uttarakhand High Court has ordered cancellation of the 200 MW Mapang Bogudiyar hydroelectric project awarded to a GVK-L&T consortium by the state government earlier, after it was found that the entity did not meet key eligibility conditions to bid for the project.

The court has ordered the state government to award the project to Reliance Infrastructure, which emerged as the second highest bidder for the project The company had also challenged the state government’s decision to award the project to the GVK-L&T combine in the court.

GMR Infrastructure has put the development of its Rs 7,000-crore power project at Shahdol, Madhya Pradesh, on the backburner, thanks to coal shortages.

The company acquired this 1,370-Mw project from SKJ Powergen in 2009. It was to be commissioned in 2014. “Private power producers are so much bruised on Thursday, they do not dare to set up anything new. No one can put up any capacity in this kind of situation,” said A Subba Rao, chief financial officer of GMR.

The Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL) has dismissed an appeal filed by the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) against an order of the Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission (TNERC)

New Delhi With the government preparing to rationalise gas distribution from RIL’s KG-D6 block in the wake of a drop in production, Lanco and GMR plants in Andhra Pradesh are a worried lot.

Lanco’s Kondapalli power plant expansion and GMR Tanir Bawi power plants in Andhra Pradesh, which are earning a fortune by selling power in the free market, are facing cancellation of gas allocation from RIL’s KG-D6 block.

FM to chair meeting on Feb 1 ten major projects stalled on fuel cost issues to be discussed

With lending to some of the many stalled power projects becoming a major concern for financial institutions, the Union government has decided to review 10 major ones, involving an investment of Rs 32,301 crore, on the coming Wednesday.

Andhra Pradesh government signed agreements for investments to the tune of a staggering Rs.1,00,000 crore on Thursday for different projects, including two oil refineries in the State.

These Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) were signed in the presence of Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy on the opening day of the two-day ‘CII Partnership Summit 2012' inaugurated by Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Anand Sharma at the Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC) here. Trade delegations from 43 countries are taking part in the summit where the State government will sign many more MoUs.