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The 1,200 MW Teesta-III hydropower project in Sikkim, delayed by natural calamities and legal hurdles, is likely to be commissioned by December 2013.
The project, which would supply power to Sikkim, Haryana and Rajasthan, among others, is being developed by Teesta Urja, where four entities, including Sikkim Government hold stakes.
Power trading solutions provider PTC India, which holds 11 per cent stake, believes the project is expected to be ready by the end of next year. “The construction activity of Teesta III project has been affected due to the earthquake of September 2011. The project is now expected to be commissioned in December 2013,” said the PTC India Chairman and Managing Director, Mr Tantra Narayan Thakur.
Singapore-based Asian Genco Pte holds 50.1 per cent stake in Teesta III while the Sikkim Government and Athena Projects Pvt Ltd has 26 per cent and 11 per cent shareholding, respectively.
Going by the initial schedule, the first unit of Teesta III was to be commissioned in August 2011, as cited by the Teesta Urja website.
The project would have six units of 200 MW each. Sources said that more than 70 per cent of work at Teesta III has been completed.
Apart from last year’s earthquake that affected the project site, differences between Teesta Urja Ltd and the Sikkim Government have also delayed the implementation of Teesta III.
A Teesta Urja official said that delays have escalated the project costs, which is now estimated to be around Rs 8,000 crore. Initially, the project expenses were projected at about Rs 5,700 crore. However, earlier this month, issues regarding transfer of 26 per cent stake to the Sikkim Government were resolved by legal action, sources said.
On July 13, Rural Electrification Corporation Ltd (REC), one of the lenders for the project had assembled a meeting of Teesta Urja stakeholders. REC has proposed to take up the cost of fundraising to the tune of Rs 1,000 crore.
The management of the river project was awarded by the Sikkim Government to Teesta Urja Ltd on BOOT (Build Own Operate Transfer) basis for a period of 35 years.
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