Shore up Uran power plant to meet needs, say experts

The government recently asked its electricity distribution company, the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company (MSEDCL), to buy electricity from Pioneer Gas Power Limited (PGPL) for 15 years to ensure an uninterrupted supply of electricity to Mumbai.

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government’s order to its electricity distribution company to buy electricity from the defunct power plant of a private company has surprised experts who have questioned why the government is not making the effort to run its own gas-based power plant at Uran with a capacity of 672 MW. The Uran unit currently generates about 130 MW to 150 MW, which is only 25 percent of its capacity.

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The government recently asked its electricity distribution company, the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company (MSEDCL), to buy electricity from Pioneer Gas Power Limited (PGPL) for 15 years to ensure an uninterrupted supply of electricity to Mumbai. PGPL has a 388 MW gas-based power plant in Mangaon tehsil of Raigad district. The letter from the energy department says: “The plant is not operational for the last five years; restarting operations will require three to four months.”

The Uran power plant is owned by Mahagenco, the state-owned power generation company. According to Mahagenco generation reports, the plant currently generates electricity of about 150 MW at a cost of ₹6.77 per unit while the gas-based power plants of NTPC situated in Gujarat generate electricity at the rate of ₹7.30 per unit.

“If we compare these rates to the power available in the market at about ₹5 per unit, they are much higher,” said power expert Ashok Pendse. “So the point is: if functional gas-based power plants are generating costly power, then it is obvious that power from a defunct plant will be even more expensive. Thus, it would be in the public interest for the government to put all its efforts into getting full gas for Uran instead of signing a new PPA.”

When asked about the current status of gas supply and power-generation at the Uran power plant, Mahagenco spokesperson Yashwant Mohite said that it required 3.5 million metric standard cubic meters of gas per day to run the plant at its full capacity of 672 MW. “As of now, we are generating power as per the supply of gas received from ONGC’s Bombay High oil and gas field,” he said. “Currently it costs about ₹6.77 per unit. We are trying to procure more gas, and the company has written to GAIL and the central government for this.”

State Energy Secretory Abha Shukla was not available for comment.