Sandesh Prabhudesai
4 September 1997
The Reliance Salgaoncar Pvt Ltd, a joint venture of reliance industries ltd with Dhirubhai Ambani's son-in-law Dattaraj Salgaoncar, sought one more concession from the government for its first mini power project in Goa to sell the additional power to private parties.
As per the central government guidelines, the Pratapsing Rane government has approved changing the first private mini power project in the state from open cycle to combined cycle, which would now generate 10 mw more, in addition to the open cycle capacity of 39.8 mw.
Chief minister Pratapsing Rane told the media persons after the cabinet meeting that the RSPL has also been allowed to privately sell the additional power it would generate, provided it is sold only to the new consumers. The project is expected to be commissioned next year.
Though the government would initially buy only 39.8 mw power from the RSPL as per the old PPA, Rane said he has retained his discretion to buy additional power, provided the private company has it in surplus. "But I don't think any surplus would remain", he says.
The major benefit of it, says the chief minister, is that the power tariff per unit would come down. Against the open cycle tariff beginning with Rs 2.69 and reaching Rs 3.83 by 2005 has now come down to Rs 3.72, though it would start charging Rs 2.86 per unit from next year.
The government is also eagerly waiting the central government to change the act to allow privatisation of transmission and distribution, the losses towards which are today 28 per cent, which is highest in the country.
Once the act is amended, the government has also announced that it would start negotiating with the RSPL for T & D privatisation as several MNCs are shying away from the tourist state due to frequent voltage fluctuations.
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