New special policy for Hydel projects soon: Minister

The Dollar Business Bureau Finally, there is some good news for all those companies that have taken up small projects as part of generating Hydel Power ranging from 40 MW to 2,000 MW.  If sources are to be believed, the Ministry of Power is not only planning to come up with a new Power Policy but is also contemplating providing the much needed fillip to all the power projects that have been stalled either due to regulatory issues or lack of proper funding. Piyush Goyal, Central Power Minister speaking on the sidelines of an event – ‘Progressive Maharashtra Summit’ organized by FICCI, said that his Ministry will design a special policy in a way that a new project will be announced after the project is awarded all the necessary approvals for its smooth functioning. With the Narendra Modi Government focusing on renewable energy, the government is planning to up the capacity from 53 bn units to 3,000 bn units in the next five years. For this, the government is looking at reviving several projects in Sikkim, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh where large investments made by promoters, investors and contractors have been stuck. The 1,200 MW Teesta-III Project in Sikkim, the 400 MW Maheswar Project in Madhya Pradesh and in Arunachal Pradesh, the 2,000 MW Shubhamsari project are the ones that need immediate clearance as most of these projects are behind schedule.  

This article was published on February 12, 2015.