CLP India signs $288-mn fin agreement for its Jhajjar plant

CLP India today said it has entered into an agreement with a host of foreign banks for financing USD 288-million to set up a 1,320 MW (2x660 MW) power project at Jhajjar in Haryana. The Hong Kong-listed company has inked an agreement with Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ , China Development Bank Corporation , Export-Import Bank of China, Hong Kong And Shanghai Banking Corporation and Standard Chartered Bank to set-up the coal-fired power generation project in India. 
Installed with supercritical technology, the project will be the largest-of-its-kind in CLP's generation portfolio in the Asia-Pacific and one of India's first supercritical power plants. The consortium of five lenders will provide around USD 288-million in financing, CLP said in a statement. 
"This marks a landmark project for India, involving overseas investment in the power industry from banks based out of Japan and China. The total investment in the Jhajjar project, including the financing of the first phase project, amounts up to approximately USD 1.3-billion,” it said. 
The first unit is scheduled to be commissioned by December 2011 and the second unit by May 2012. Once completed, the project is expected to significantly improve the power situation in Haryana, with 90 per cent of the electricity output dedicated to the state and the remaining 10 per cent to Delhi, the company said.