The power starved state will get an extra 100 MW of power after the approval of Kerala Small Hydro Development Policy- 2012 and revision of tariff for the Hydel Captive Power Projects. The tariff revision is under the consideration of the Kerala State Electricity Regulatory Commission (KSERC) and a hearing is scheduled on September 7.
The tariff for Small Hydro Promotion (SHP) projects is fixed at Rs 2.99 a unit which is backtracking the investors from the Hydel Captive Power Projects. It was pointed out that around Rs 6 to 7 crore was needed for the production of 1 MW of power from small hydel projects. If the tariff is not hiked to Rs 4.15 a unit, the projects will not be feasible. Anil, head of Small Hydro Power Division, under the Power Department, said that around 60 small hydel projects will be exhibited at the Emerging Kerala 2012 Global Connect scheduled to be held in September this year.
Those companies which gets selected in the bidding will not have to pay anything as water cess. The threshold premium to be deposited in the KSEB is Rs 15 lakh per MW which, according to the power producers, is very high. A reduction in the threshold premium will also be considered to attract more investors.
Meanwhile, the first phase of the Karikkayam 15 MW project is in the final stage of commissioning. For the upper Vattappara, lower Vattapara, upper Poringal, Karumbatti and Thoovalar projects, which together can produce 25 MW of power, the process of land acquisition is on. The detailed project report of the Attle project in Palakkad, which can produce 6 MW, has been completed.
According to Anil, the projects are being delayed due to the slow pace at which land acquisition is progressing. With the implementation of the Kerala Small Hydro Development Policy-2012, the land acquisition will become more easy, with the government taking the initiative for 25 per cent of acquisition if the entrepreneur ensures 75 per cent land for the project. There will also be a single window clearance system for the hydel captive power projects. There is also a proposal for excess production during the monsoon season and getting the power back during summer when there will be water shortage.
Now the hydro-electric project allotted to a captive unit cannot exceed the annual requirement of the company based on the past three years consumption plus the capacity addition expected to be added within the next five years from the date of allotment.
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