KOCHI: For a power-starved state like Kerala, the commissioning of the thermal power plant by BSES Kerala Power Limited (BKPL) at Pathalam in the Eloor industrial belt in 2000 came as a much-needed relief. However, the ambitious joint venture of Bombay Suburban Electricity Supply (BSES) and the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) met with an early demise in 2015, when KSEB refused to renew the power purchase agreement. Today, trucks leaving the gates of BSES Kerala Power Limited carrying various parts of the plant signal the untimely death of a Rs 600-crore project.
Speaking to TNIE, a source associated with the plant said, “The power plant, located on 20 acres of land and running on naptha, had the capacity to generate 165 MW of electricity, which was being bought by KSEB. Since naptha used to cost only around Rs 6,000 per metric tonne, the KSEB got electricity at a cheap rate. However, over the years, the cost of naptha increased significantly and touched Rs 55,000 per metric tonne.
This significantly increased the cost of power. It is thought that this led KSEB to decide not to renew the power purchase agreement.” According to the source, at the time when the agreement with KSEB came to an end, the power plant was left with 10,000 metric tonnes of naptha.
“So we ran the plant for two more years. The electricity generated was bought by KSEB. However, it should be noted that the State Electricity Board didn’t pay us the price for the power that they purchased from us and sold to the consumers. Besides this, KSEB also has to pay for the 16 million units of electricity it had earlier purchased,” added the source.
The source said that the plant started as a joint venture of BSES and KSIDC. Later on, in 2006, Reliance Infrastructure bought KSIDC shares in the venture. KSIDC had invested Rs 10 crore in the venture.
Even as things had turned sour for the power plant regarding the production and sale of electricity, another blow was dealt by the state government when it issued an order directing BSES Kerala Power Limited to hand over the 20-acre land that it had leased from Travancore Cochin Chemicals Limited.
“The order came in March 2023,” said the source. It is learnt that, sometime during the discussions regarding the future of the plant, the state government had expressed interest in acquiring the venture at 10 per cent depreciation. “That is 10 per cent of Rs 560 crore — around Rs 56 crore!” said the source. However, KSEB was not interested, and hence the idea was dropped.
It is interesting to note that after the LNG Terminal came at Puthuvype, a gas pipeline was laid to the plant, and even a gas turbine was set up at the plant. “But nothing came out of it,” said the source. Adhering to the GO, BKPL then decided to hand over the land. Now, the plant has been sold as scrap to a US-based company. Already, the gas turbines have been taken away. “Now, other parts are also being dismantled,” added the source.