NEW DELHI: The Union government has extended the environmental clearance for the Ratle Hydroelectric Project on the Chenab River in the Indus basin by five years, a decision made amid the suspension of the Indus Water Treaty.
The Ratle Hydroelectric Project is a run-of-river project located in the Kishtwar District of Jammu and Kashmir. It aims to harness the flow of the Chenab River to generate 850 MW of power, with an estimated cost of Rs 5,281.94 crore.
During its 46th meeting on January 9, the Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) constituted an Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC), which granted the validity extension of the Environmental Clearance (EC) for the project in an area of 567.22 hectares located at Village Drabshala, in Kishtwar and Doda districts.
The project is being executed by the Ratle Hydroelectric Power Corporation Limited (RHPCL), a joint venture between NHPC Limited and JKSPDCL, with equity participation of 51% and 49%, respectively.
The MoEFCC first granted EC to the project in December 2012 for a period of 10 years to a company called GVK Ratle. However, GVK later abandoned the project, and the EC was transferred to the joint venture RHPCL in June 2021.
The EAC observed that the government had issued a notification in April 2022, extending the validity of the EC for a total period of 13 years, which includes a maximum of two years for extension and one year wave off due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This means the EC has been formally extended until the end of 2025.
Consequently, the EC granted for the Ratle Project (850 MW) on December 12, 2012, is now valid until December 11, 2030, with a possible further extension of up to two years.
Additionally, the EAC directed the project proponents to submit a proposal for the EC validity extension before the existing EC expires.
The project involves the construction of a 133-meter-high concrete gravity dam (measured from the deepest foundation level), with four underground circular steel-lined pressure shafts/penstocks and an underground powerhouse accommodating four units of 205 MW (Francis type). A unit of 30 MW is also planned to utilise the stipulated continuous release of environmental flows. The design energy in a 90% dependable year, assuming 95% machine availability, is 3,136.76 MU. The scheduled completion of the project is five years.
As of now, the physical progress of work is approximately 27%, with an anticipated completion date by the end of 2028, subject to unforeseen delays.