Government trying to push approvals to harness hydro power potential

NEW DELHI: The government is doing all it takes to harness the full potential of hydro power in the country, Power Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said today.


"I am trying to push through permissions for all our hydro projects to increase our potential, whether they lie with the Ministry of Water Resources or the Ministry of Environment and Forests or CEA (Central Electricity Authority) or the Arunachal government, so that we can get India's hydro potential on stream," he said here.

The Power Ministry is working with other allied ministries to bring up hydro power projects in a timely manner, Scindia said.

The minister denied media reports that he was unhappy with the lengthy procedures of the CEA for clearing hydel projects, which in turn delayed those plants.

"I don't know where that report came from, there are no issues at all," Scindia said.

The reports had said that A S Bakshi, who stepped down as chairman of CEA in July, had informed the Power Ministry that there were no delays on the part of CEA and the projects were not taken up for construction mainly for want of environment and forest clearances, non-signing of power purchase agreements and the absence of financial closure.

Of the total installed generation capacity of 2,11,766 MW in the country, hydro power accounts for 39,416 MW.

Meanwhile, an Advisory Group formed by the Power Ministry in February discussed the issue of amending the Electricity Act 2003.

"We have discussed various factors on changes to the Electricity Act 2003," Scindia said, adding the government is hopeful of finalising this matter soon. Possible amendments include a mechanism to pass on higher fuel costs to consumers.

The Advisory Group includes Cyrus Mistry, Chairman of Tata Power, Anil Ambani, Chairman of Reliance Power, and Chanda Kochhar, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of ICICI Bank.