6 gas-based power plants sitting idle in State

6 gas-based power plants sitting idle in State
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Shortage of supplies from RIL's KG-D6 forces them to shut down operations; their combined capacity stands at 2,000 MW Hyderabad: Even as the State...

Shortage of supplies from RIL's KG-D6 forces them to shut down operations; their combined capacity stands at 2,000 MW gas2Hyderabad: Even as the State is reeling unprecedented power crisis, as many as six gas-base power plants that are capable of producing 2000 MW power have stopped operations due to gas shortage. A Officials claim there is no way except shutting down the plants as gas supplies from Krishn-Godavari basin stopped. The affected plants include GMR's power plants at Vemagiri and also barge-mounted which have installed capacity of 607 MW, GVK's Jegurupadu Extension (220MW) and Gauthami (464 MW), Konaseema Gas Power (445 MW) and Lanco's Kondapalli Stage-II (366 MW). "All the gas-based power plants which get gas supplies from Reliance's KG-D6 block were affect as the gas supplies came to standstill. Though some other plants are operating, they get fuel from ONGC or GAIL," an official said. Industry people had said earlier that natural gas supplies from RIL's KG-D6 block to power plants have completely stopped after output from the eastern offshore fields dropped to an all-time low. Beginning from March 1, none of the 25 power plants that were allocated gas from KG-D6 fields is getting any supplies, sources had said. The power generation fluctuates from day to day and the last supply we received from KG-D6 was about 0.4 mmscmd, the official added, When contacted a Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) spokesperson said they have no role in gas allocation.A "RIL has been supplying gas according to the allocation policy of the government and it is not for us to decide whom to supply gas," the RIL spokesperson said. Official reports reveal that the gas based power plants in the State are generating power to an extent of 700 MW as against the installed capacity of 2700 MW. Thus, there is an idle capacity of around 2000 MW.A At present, four plants - Vijjeswaram gas, Lanco Kondapalli stage-I, Spectrum and GVK's Jegurupadu-I- are being operated with minimum gas supplies from ONGC or GAIL. The shortage in gas supplies has hit the State hard as it is facing acute power shortages. At the present, the demand and supply gap is pegged at 60 million units per day.A When contacted, a GMR spokesperson declined to comment, while Lanco officials could not be reached.A However, it is said that Lanco's Kondapalli Stage-I (368 mw) is getting gas from GAIL, but gas supplies for Stage-II were stopped. GMR's Barge mounted gas-based power plant was originally commissioned at Mangalore in 2001. After operating with naphtha as fuel till April 2010, the barge was moved to Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh in July 2010, where it has been modified and commissioned to operate on natural gas. The GMR Group's Vemagiri plant commenced commercial operation in February 2008. The plant was initially allocated gas from GAIL and later changed to RIL D-6. GVK group, which operates three power plants in the State, is forced to shut two plants completely. While the Group's Jegurupadu Extension and Gauthami were completely down, Jegurupadu is operating with roughly 50 per cent capacity.A Besides, hydel power generation in the State is also in the same league as the gas-based ones. Though the State has installed capacity of 3,925 MW, it's able to produce just about 500 MW. (with inputs from PTI)
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