8 power biggies in race for Rs 24,000-crore TN UMPP

Eight power firms, including private players like Adani Power, GMR Energy and L&T, as well as state-owned NTPC, have expressed interest in bidding for the R24,000-crore Cheyyur ultra-mega power project (UMPP) in Tamil Nadu, according to Power Finance Corporation (PFC).

 

Technical bids for the project, proposed to be fired with imported coal, were opened on Thursday. Jindal Power, JSW Energy and Sterlite Infraventures and Hong Kong-based CLP are the other private players who have evinced interest in the project.

 

Tata Power and state-owned NHPC, which are in the bidding race for the domestic coal-based Orissa UMPP, have not shown interest to bid for the Cheyyur project.

 

Significantly, Tata Power has the country's first imported coal-based UMPP at Mundra.

 

On the other hand, GMR, which has acquired large-sized coal mines in Australia, has come forward to bid for the Tamil Nadu UMPP after giving the Orissa UMPP bidding a miss. According to PFC sources, environment, forest clearance and water linkage for the project are in place and process is under way for acquisition of land.

 

“The response from renowned and reputed applicants in the prevailing investment scenario in the infrastructure sector highlights the high degree of comfort and confidence the investors perceive owing to the state of preparedness of the project,” PFC expressed satisfaction at investors' response to the Cheyyur UMPP.

 

PFC will undertake an appraisal of the received technical bids and based on that, invite price offers. Bidding for the Orissa UMPP is also underway and nine players are in the race. Bidding for the two projects is being conducted by PFC on the basis of revised guidelines, which vest ownership of project land in discoms buying power from the project rather than the developer. However, developers will have contractual lease of project land for 40 years as against 25 stipulated earlier.

 

PFC initiated bidding for the two projects in September after a gap of more than five years.

 

All UMPPs have the standard capacity of 4,000 MW. So far, four UMPPs at Sasan, Tilaiya, Mundra and Krishnapatnam have been auctioned out. Of these, the Mundra a nd Krishnapatnam UMPPs are based on imported coal while the other two are to be fired with domestic coal.