Indian scraps tenders for mega power projects

The government of India, through the Power, Coal and Renewable Energy Minister Piyush Goyal, has canceled two 4000MW ultra mega power projects (UMPPs) in Odisha and Tamil Nadu.

The government has also announced that an expert panel will analyze the methodology adopted in the tender process to decide whether there was any substantial error in the proceeding.

State owned NTPC was the sole bidder for the Tamil Nadu project and NTPC and a NHPC-BHEL joint venture were in the fray for the Odisha UMPP.

According to sources, the companies felt that the bidding structure for the UMPPs, based on domestic coal, was not fully in consonance with the Act and Rules governing coal mining in the country.

Goyal reiterated in its public appearance that the government hopes to award 4-5 UMPPs this year.

For the Tamil Nadu UMPP, the private companies involved in the tender process were Adani Power, CLP India, Jindal Steel & power, JSW Energy, Sterlite Energy and Tata Power.

For the Odisha UMPP, the private companies involved in the tender process were, among others, Adani Power, CLP India, GMR Energy, Jindal Steel and Power, JSW Energy and Sterlite Energy.

The total investment is estimated a Rs500 billion (US$8.3 billion) for the two projects. The projects were to be developed on a design, build, finance, operation and transfer (DBFOT) basis.Ultra Mega Power Projects (UMPP) are a series of ambitious power projects planned by the Government of India. The power projects, each with a capacity of 4000 MW or above, are being developed with the aim to solve country´s chronic power deficits.