West Bengal to buy hydropower from Bhutan
Wednesday, 04 December 2002, 20:30 IST
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KOLKATA: West Bengal is hoping to meet its peak-hour power shortages by picking up half the production from an upcoming hydropower project in neighbouring Bhutan. Bhutan's Tala Power Project, which is expected to produce 1,020 MW of power by 2004, will also feed the Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand and Sikkim. But West Bengal is already bidding for 50 percent of the production from Tala project, which is technically aided by technocrats from India's National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC), sources in the power department said. The state-owned Power Grid Corporation will import the power from Bhutan and distribute it to the Indian states. Like the private sector-run Independent Power Producer (IPP), which oversees electricity generation, the government wants to set up the Independent Power Transmission Agency (IPTA) under a joint venture. The IPTA would be responsible for transmitting power from Tala project. Britain's National Grid Corporation and Canada's Hydro Quebec had shown interest in setting up the joint venture. At present West Bengal's use of thermal and hydropower ratio stands at 97:3, which it wants to bring to 60:40. Though the state has some thermal power plants, production of hydropower is negligible at around only 40 MW only. The sources said the Bhutan government would build the transmission infrastructure from Tala to Phuntsholling bordering West Bengal. From there on the Power Grid Corporation would have to construct the transmission lines. The Grid wants to build the transmission lines with help of private investment. West Bengal's demand for power has gone up manifold. The state sees a daily shortfall of 360 MW and has to borrow about 110 MW of power from federal power agencies. The state government is also inviting participation of the private sector for building hydro power plants to augment power generation. Some tentative sites for small and medium power plants had been earmarked in Darjeeling, but no final decision had yet been taken on this account.
Source: IANS
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