The ongoing fiscal year 2008-09 is poised to be most favourable in terms of power capacity addition by the private sector. According to government estimates, private sector companies are likely to add 3,107 mw of new power capacity which would exceed the combined achievement in the past four years. During 2004-05 to 2007-08, private sector entities added only 2,033 mw of capacity, excluding renewable energy sources like wind, biomass and small hydropower.
It is interesting to note that private power projects likely to commission this year include large gas-based power projects that are completed, but where gas supply agreements have delayed commercial operations. Konaseema Oakwell's 445-mw combined cycle gas-based power plant and Gautami Power's 464-mw similar plant, both in Andhra Pradesh, are cases in point.
Gas supplies to power plants in India will be bolstered once commercial supplies begin from Reliance Industries' gigantic discovery in Krishna-Godavari basin, off Andhra Pradesh. The biggest power plant to commission this year would be Torrent Power's 1,128-mw Sugen gas-based plant in Gujarat.
Jindal Steel & Power Ltd is also expected to commission Unit 4 of its 4x240 mw coal-fired Raigarh power plant in Chhattisgarh. The first three units aggregating 750 mw were commissioned during 2007-08. This incidentally was the only private power capacity to be added in that year. Some other projects scheduled to commission this year include the first two units of Raj West Power's 8x135 mw lignite power project at Jalipa in Rajasthan. Lanco Amarkantak Power Pvt. Ltd, part of the Lanco Group, is also scheduled to commission the first unit of its 2x300 mw coal-fired Pathadi power project in Korba district of Chhattisgarh. Thanks to substantial capacity addition, private companies will enjoy a higher share in total power capacity added. In 2008-09, private companies are estimated to account for 27 per cent of the total power capacity addition of 11,508 mw. Compared with an average share of 9 per cent during the four-year period ending 2007-08, private sector companies will record a much bigger accomplishment this year (see table).
Overview of 2007-08: Total power capacity addition was 9,263 mw in 2007-08, the highest in any year so far. The overall performance was subjugated by state government companies that added 5,273 mw of new capacity. West Bengal dominated the proceedings with 1,960 mw of fresh capacity that included the 900-mw Purulia pumped storage scheme. Central government companies added 3,240 mw of new capacity against the targeted 6,560 mw. Across all ownerships, thermal power capacity addition was 6,620 mw, accounting for 71.5 per cent of the total addition, followed by hydropower (26.2 per cent) and nuclear power (2.3 per cent).