Stressed power projects: FM holds review meeting with lenders
New Delhi, Jan 13 (PTI) Finance Minister Arun Jaitleytoday held a review meeting with lenders and senior officialson the financial stress faced by some of the power projects,including that of Tata Power and Adani Group in Gujarat.
The high-level meeting was also attended by PrincipalSecretary to the Prime Minister Nripendra Misra, seniorofficials of power ministry, SBI chairman Rajnish Kumar, amongothers, sources said.
It is to be noted that Tata Power last year offered tosell 51 per cent stake in its 4,000 MW Mundra power projectfor Re 1 to states like Gujarat, which gets electricity fromit, to tide over the financial crisis facing this business.
Besides, there were allegations that Adani Group chargingexorbitant electricity tariff in Gujarat.
However, the company refuted the charges saying it soldpower to the state at a "very attractive" price of Rs 2.65 perunit over the last four years.
Coastal Gujarat Power Ltd (CGPL), the Tata Power unitwhich operates the Mundra project, wrote to Gujarat Urja VikasNigam Ltd offering to retain only 49 per cent stake andoperate the project as a contractor provided the procurers buyall the power at higher tariffs.
In the letter, copies of which were marked to theprincipal secretary to the prime minister and Union powersecretary, CGPL CEO Krishna Kumar Sharma said Mundra hasaccumulated losses of Rs 6,457 crore against a paid up equityof Rs 6,083 crore.
It has outstanding loan of Rs 10,159 crore and lendershave stopped further disbursal due to non-viability of theproject, he wrote.
Tata had in February 2006 won a bid for the 4,000 MWMundra project in Gujarat, quoting a price of Rs 2.26 forevery unit of electricity generated. It had intended to firethe plan with coal imported from mines owned by the Tata Groupin Indonesia. PTI DP ANZMKJ.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.