Sandesh Prabhudesai
20 September 2000
While the country is heading for privatisation of power sector to overcome a major shortcoming in the infrastructural sector, Goa perhaps is the first state trying to reverse the trend by trying and getting rid of it.
In an attempt to reduce the burden of buying the privately generated power, the state today signed a supplementary power purchase agreement with the Reliance Salgaoncar Power Company Ltd, Goa's first private mini power generation project of 50 MW.
"This is just a first phase and we are hoping for further reduction of power on these lines", said power minister Digambar Kamat, after signing the agreement for reducing the burden of 6 MW out of total 39.8 MW the state was purchasing from the RSPCL.
In addition to 8 MW sold directly to the Mormugao Port Trust, the government has now allowed to sell 9 MW more to any private firm. "We would be more happy if the RSPCL totally moves out from selling it to us", quips Kamat.
The PPA was signed with the RSPCL by the erstwhile Congress government for a naphtha-based power generation plant, due to which the electricity department went into total loss, reversing its earlier position of being one of the few profit-making departments.
While Goa was drawing around 180 MW from the national grid by paying around Rs 34 crore annually at the cost of Rs 1.40 per unit, the RSPCL's 40 MW cost the state around Rs 162 crore at an exorbitant rate of Rs 4.50 per unit. "We will now save around Rs 18 crore annually", says the BJP minister.
The erstwhile Congress government's visionless power policy had come under severe criticism from almost all the corners, sidelining which the new coalition government led by Francisco Sardinha, a former Congressman, has now decided not to go for any more PPAs with the private power generators.
Instead, the power minister has pulled up his sleeves to upgrade its wheeling capacity to draw the balance amount of power, which was going waste in spite of being allotted by the NTPC all these years.
After installing 100 MVA transformer last week at Xeldem, yet another transformer would be commissioned by October first week, increasing its total drawing capacity to 300 MW. In addition, the government has also allowed direct sale of captive power generated by any industry, without signing any PPA with the government.
Kamat's efforts to turn the situation of load shedding back to normal appears to have succeeded, due to which the high court has also now agreed to lift the ban on new power connections since December last year, in stages. It was imposed in May 1998, after power situation totally collapsed in the tourist state.
Former power minister Mauvin Godinho, a tainted politician among all, was held responsible for creating chaos in the power sector, especially by haphazardly allowing power guzzling industries like steel rolling mills and ferro alloy units in the state. The coalition government has now totally banned such industries here.
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