Ranganadi project to close power production for 3 months
Our Correspondent
Itanagar: The Ranganadi Hydro Electric project (RHEP) at Yazali in Lower Subansiri district of Arunachal Pradesh will stop production of electricity for three months due to repair and maintenance of the project.
The project, with installed capacity of 405 megawatt, will stop its production from February 1 to April 30 this year for undertaking repair work at the tunnel, which has reportedly developed leakage, Arunachal Pradesh Power Minister (Electrical) Tamiyo Taga told reporters at Arunachal Press Club here on Thursday.
With the shutting down of the project owned by the North East Electrical Power Corporation Ltd (NEEPCO), Arunachal Pradesh would face power shortage to the tune of 60 mw daily. The average peak demand of power in the State per day is 100 mw, excluding five districts – Tawang, Anjaw, Upper Siang, Dibang Valley and Shi-Yomi, which are dependent on local generation of power, Power Department Chief Engineer (Western Zone) Gumdo Doji informed.
“To overcome the shortfall of 60 mw power, Chief Minister Pema Khandu and I wrote to the Union Minister of State for Power to allocate additional power from central sector power generating stations and after much persuasion, the ministry allocated 30 mw of power from Unchahar-I Therma Power Plant of NTPC to the state on round the clock basis for three months,” the minister informed.
Taga added that the NEEPCO had also consented to allocate regular 34 mw of power of Meghalaya for 5.30 hours regularly for three months.
“The NEEPCO will provide 10 mw power from Kathalguri gas power station in Assam and 24 mw from Agartala gas thermal combined cycle power project in Tripura which are meant for Meghalaya,” the minister disclosed.
“The State Power Department on Wednesday inked power purchase agreements with NTPC Ltd for 30 mw and NEEPCO for 34 mw for three months involving an expenditure of 28.27 crore,” Taga informed adding, the State Finance Department has already conveyed budgetary support with finance concurrence and accordingly informed the department.
“In case of any exigency on real time basis, the department can draw to an extent of 12 per cent of scheduled quantum of power,” Taga said and appealed the people to cooperate with the department during the period. Responding to questions why NEEPCO has decided to shut down the project when board exams are approaching along with general elections, Taga said that due to leakage in the tunnel, NEEPCO had decided to go for the shut down as it is a lean season and repair works would be much easier as the flow of water in the river is less. He added that with the shutdown of RHEP, power production at Pare hydro project in Papum Pare district would also be affected as water discharge at Pare River during lean season is less and the production of power is possible only when the water from RHEP tunnel are released in the river.
When asked the reason why NEEPCO authorities had not informed the state government well in advance but only on January 11 last, the minister stated that it was due to late approval from the operational coordination committee under North East Regional Power Committee (NERPC). “We have managed the shortfall of power and on behalf of the state government assured the people to ensure all time power supply to the consumers during the crucial period of three months without fail,” Taga asserted.
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