*Project fails to generate sufficient funds to meet construction cost
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, June 26: Baglihar Hydroelectric Project’s Stage-II, which was commissioned over a year back, has failed to start generating sufficient funds to meet the construction cost as on one side Jammu and Kashmir State Power Development Corporation (JKSPDC) is struggling hard to get electricity buyers and on the other side the Power Development Department (PDD) is not clearing the energy bills despite getting entire quantity of power from the project that too at the lowest possible rate.
Official sources told EXCELSIOR that Baglihar Hydroelectric Project’s Stage-II with an installed capacity of 450 Mega Watts was taken up for execution by the Jammu and Kashmir State Power Development Corporation as was approved by the State Government vide Order No.81-PDD of 2012 dated March 19, 2012.
All the three units having capacity to generate 150 Mega Watts of electricity each were commissioned between September 2015 and May 2016 and commercially the project was commissioned on May 4, 2016. However, during the past over one year the JKSPDC has failed to get appropriate buyers of the electricity.
“The JKSPDC wants to sell the electricity at the rate of Rs 4.30 per unit, which was worked out keeping in view the expenditure incurred on construction of Stage-II of the Baglihar Hydroelectric Project but till date no utility associated with the Northern Grid has expressed willingness to purchase the power as the rate is considered as exorbitant”, sources said while disclosing that electricity from power projects in other parts of the country is available at less than Rs 3 per unit as such no utility wants to pay more to JKSPDC.
They further disclosed that JKSPDC is also paying water usage charges to the Government and this is also one of the reasons behind calculating Rs 4.30 per unit cost of electricity being generated by Stage-II of the Baglihar Hydroelectric Project. “Though the Corporation has requested the State Electricity Regulatory Commission (SERC) for allowing the water usage charges to be claimed from the distribution utility as pass through yet no decision has been taken on this aspect till date”, sources added.
They informed that in the absence of appropriate buyers of the electricity the JKSPDC has been left with no other option but to sell the entire quantity of electricity being generated by Baglihar Stage-II to Power Development Department of J&K that too at a rate of Rs 2.61 per unit as was decided by the Jammu and Kashmir State Electricity Regulatory Commission (SERC) last year. Even power from Stage-I of the Baglihar Project is sold to J&K at this rate.
“In this way, the Baglihar Hydroelectric Project’s Stage-II has failed to start generating sufficient funds to meet the construction cost even over one year after its commissioning”, sources said, adding “the most astonishing fact is that even after getting entire quantity of electricity generated by Stage-II of the project that too at the most economical rate of Rs 2.61 per unit the Power Development Department has failed to clear the energy bills till date and the liabilities towards the Power Development Corporation are running into several hundred crores of rupees”.
When contacted, a senior officer of the Jammu and Kashmir Power Development Corporation told EXCELSIOR on the condition of anonymity that despite repeated reminders the PDD has failed to clear the liabilities on the pretext of funds constraints. “Every time when the issue of liabilities is highlighted in the official meetings it is stated that money will not go anywhere and PDD will clear the dues as and when funds are made available”, he added.
“No doubt this is the issue between two Government entities but clearance of pending liabilities and regular payment of dues should be given serious attention so as Power Development Corporation is required to spend huge money for the completion of other projects presently at different stages of execution”, sources said, adding “even the JKSPDC requires money for regular maintenance of 23 hydroelectric power stations with a total installed capacity of 1220.96 Mega Watts”.
In order to ensure that Stage-II of Baglihar Hydroelectric Project generates sufficient funds to meet the construction cost, the Government should intervene and play its role in getting all the liabilities cleared as early as possible and even take final decision on the plea of the JKSPDC on water usage charges, sources stressed.
“Moreover, frequent power curtailments by the Power Development Department despite getting entire quantity of power from Baglihar Stage-II is also an issue which is required to be pondered upon so that people are saved from power cuts particularly during the summer season”, sources said.
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