Centre ready to help Assam in power sector, says Minister Pralhad Joshi

MoU signed for Rs 5,500-crore solar project

 We need to think and act in futuristic line: CM

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Union Coal Mines and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said that the Centre would extend all help to the Assam Government for power generation— solar or thermal.

The Union minister said this here today at the function for an MoU signed between NLC India Ltd and APDCL for a 1000-MW Renewable Energy Project. He said, "Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has the vision to make Assam self-sufficient in the power sector. The government of India will try its best to make the Chief Minister translate his vision into a reality. Sarma is a dynamic and active Chief Minister. I hope he will achieve his vision in the days ahead. The Union Ministry will invest around Rs 5,000 crore in this renewable energy project. If needed, we will invest more in similar projects in the state."

Joshi said, "Coal-based thermal projects will be in demand for the next 50 years. We need to reduce pollution by coal, besides laying importance on coal gasification. We need to keep in mind that nature can fulfil our needs, but not our greed. Since power demand goes up every day, we need to find alternative power sources. Technology cannot function without power."

The Chief Minister said, "The peak hour daily demand of power in the state is 2400-MW. It will go up to 3500 MW in the next two years. Industrial activities are increasing fast in the state. We cannot provide power to consumers by it buying at Rs 12 per unit from power grids. We need to increase our own power generation. We generate around 300 MW of power at present. It is too meagre. MoU for 1000 MW power is a big leap forward."

The Chief Minister said, "We should think and act in the futuristic line. Karnataka thinks of 2042 now, but we think of 2025-26. We need to change this mindset as the investment in the state is rising fast. We need to find ways to provide power to the investors who are kin to invest in the state. A few years back, we thought of a piecemeal generation like 25 MW, 50 MW, and 100 MW of power. The MoU we signed today will provide us with 1000 MW of power from one source. We have planned to develop a coalfield in some other state and generate power there to meet our power demand. We need support from the Union Ministry in this regard. APDCL needs to see if it can store solar power for use at night. Solar power can meet the power consumption during the day."

NLC India Ltd CMD Rakesh Kumar said the project would require around Rs 5,500-crore investment. "The power project will generate 1,500 million units in the first year. The target is to generate 35,000 million units in the next 25 years. Around 3,000 people will get direct or indirect employment opportunities from this project. We have already started the preliminary works of the project," the CMD said. APDCL sources said that the target schedule of the project is 18 months from the day of laying its foundation stone.

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