ONGC fuels Tripura power plant

ONGC Tripura Power Company (OTPC), a joint venture between Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services Limited and the government of Tripura, will construct a 726.6 megawatt natural gas-fired power plant in the northeastern state of Tripura.

Due to be commissioned in March 2012, the estimated cost of the project is Rs35 billion (US$764.5 million). Most of the finance will be provided by ONGC through a US$515 million debt facility from Power Finance Corporation.

The project will use natural gas from ONGC’s fields in Tripura to generate electricity, with about 87% of the power generated being sold to India’s northeastern states. Electricity generated by the plant will be carried by a 656-kilometre cable from Palatana to Bongaigaon in Assam, which will be constructed at an estimated cost of Rs17.7 billion. The cable will be built and operated by North East Transmission Company (NETC), a special purpose vehicle jointly promoted by OTPC, Power Grid Corporation and all of the northeastern states. Financial closure of the transmission scheme was achieved last year, when NETC signed a Rs14.16 billion term loan agreement with Power Finance Corporation.