India’s state-run North Eastern Electric Power Corporation (Neepco) has been forced to delay and downscale its combined-cycle gas power project at Monarchak after ONGC more than halved gas supply. This meant that the 500 MW project could only be realized based on a 65.42 MW gas turbine and 36.25 MW steam turbine – ready to start as and when there'll be fuel.
The 101 Monarchak CCGT is currently being commissioned by Neepco – but the lack of fuel is delaying the process, incurring the operator Neepco a loss of Rs3.5 crore a month. Situated 70 km south of Tripura’s state capital and just 8 km from the India-Bangladeshi border would render power exports relatively easy.
According to the plant manager, the design capacity of the CCGT already had to be reduced back in 2003-04 after India’s state oil and gas company (ONGC) reduced gas allocation by half. All infrastructure for a CCGT with 280 MW capacity was established but could not be realised after gas allocation was cut further.
As of now, 101 MW has been build and the plant manager said "the commercial generation of electricity of this combined-cycle power plant would start as and when the ONGC starts supplying gas."
Offering no explanation, let alone excuses, for the lack of gas supply, an ONGC executive told Indian reporters that the company would be able to supply 0.5 million standard cubic metres of gas per day to the Neepco project by December this year or January 2017.
No compensation will be given to the plant operator for any losses incurred.
Aspiring electricity exports to Bangladesh
ONGC’s gas rationing policy is hampering plans to increase electricity exports from India’s Tripura province to neighbouring Bangladesh. The state-own gas supplier clearly seems to prioritise supply to its own power plants, such as the 726 MW Palatana CCGT in Tripura state. A NEEPCO-run gas power plant also reportedly receives fairly uninterrupted supply of fuel.
“Supplying of gas to Palatana is a priority to ONGC,” the company’s executive said, given that the project is providing power to Bangladesh as per India's commitment. He underlined that the CCGT has been supplying 100 MW of power to Bangladesh since March; and he claimed that the Palatana project would supply electricity to eight of India’s north-eastern states.
Yet, load-shedding and rolling power outages have become a normality for the region. Critics point out the hypocrisy that “despite several tall claims, the state is unable to meet the status of ‘load shedding free state’ – yet it is bragging about exporting power to Bangladesh.”