ALAPPUZHA: Even as a power crisis looms large, the lone unit of the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) in the state has been lying idle for more than 18 months. That too after more than `30 crore had been spent to modernise the plant at Kayamkulam in order to shift from naphtha to Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to reduce the cost of production.
With the KSEB struggling with its finances, the government has stayed away from finding a way to make the plant viable again. Nor has there been any initiative to bring LNG from Kochi, after power generation had stopped due to high production cost. To top it, the KSEB is paying `17.5 crore to the NTPC as fixed cost every month.
An NTPC officer, on condition of anonymity, told Express: “The NTPC had utilised about ` 33 crore to modify the plant. But the state government did not take any step to lay the pipeline. An alternative proposal to utilise waterways to transport LNG is also under consideration,” the officer said.
A metric tonne of naphtha costs `44,150, including the state and central taxes. Power generated from naphtha would cost `8 to 8.02 per unit, much higher than the rate of power generated from hydro stations. The officer said the price could be reduced to `5 to `5.50 once the LNG-based plant starts functioning.
The Central Power ministry has also agreed to help the state upgrade the 350 MW power plant commissioned in 1998 to tackle acute power shortage in the state. Union Minister of Power Piyush Goyal, who had visited the plant last year, had agreed to allocate funds if the state government submits proposals for development.
Electricity Minister M M Mani said: “The high rate of electricity is the major hurdle for purchasing electricity from the NTPC. The government has been thinking about other options to reduce the price.”
Experts feel that laying the LNG pipeline is imperative to the development of NTPC. “The pipeline project through the sea was mooted a few years ago, but delays due to various reasons are a challenge for the state. The expenditure of electricity generation from NTPC can be reduced through the introduction of the project,” said M P Sukumaran Nair, chairman, Public Sector Restructuring and Internal Audit Board.
Among the reasons cited for shelving the project was opposition from fisherfolk, who feared the pipeline project would endanger their livelihood.