Telangana to procure G-9 grade coal from Mahanadi, Coal India for Yadadri power plant
Hyderabad, Sep 24 (IANS) With the power generation at Yadadri Thermal Power Plant coming to a halt, the government of Telangana will procure G-9 grade coal from Mahanadi Coalfields and Coal India.
Following direction from Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, the Energy department officials will initiate measures to procure coal from Mahanadi and Coalfields and Coal India.
Deputy Chief Minister, Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, who is also the Energy Minister, said on Thursday that he will soon discuss with Minister Kishan Reddy, the supply of G-9 grade coal required for the plant, from the Central Coal Mines Department.
He said at a high-level review of the energy sector presided over by Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, officials were directed to take steps to ensure full-scale power generation at the Yadadri Thermal Power Plant by Dasara.
The Deputy CM posted on ‘X’ that due to the ill-considered decisions of the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government, the plant was constructed far from the pit head, resulting in an additional burden of approximately ₹40,000 crore on the state for coal transportation.
“We reviewed the difficulties being faced due to the unavailability of G-9 grade coal in Singareni and the failure to participate in e-auctions in the past. With the aim of continuously providing quality power to the people, we directed the officials to take necessary actions for the temporary purchase of coal from Mahanadi Coal Fields and Coal India,” he said.
Chief Minister Reddy instructed the Deputy Chief Minister to hold a meeting with Union Coal Minister Kishan Reddy to address the coal crisis for power generation in the state.
The Chief Minister took a serious note of the stoppage of power generation due to coal shortage.
During the meeting, CM Revanth Reddy sought the details of the supply of quality coal to the thermal power units in the state.
The officials briefed the Chief Minister that G9 grade coal is required for generation at the Yadadri Thermal Power Station and the Singareni did not have the coal blocks to produce G9 coal and that there is no possibility of producing G9 coal from Singareni in the near future also.
The CM raised questions on the construction of the Yadadri Thermal Power Station using a specific technology requiring only G9 quality coal which was unavailable in Singareni.
The construction of the Yadadri Thermal Power Station far away from the pithead (adjacent to coal mines) and the additional financial burden placed on the state due to coal supply logistics was reviewed in detail in the meeting.
The Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister inquired about the possibilities of sourcing G9 grade coal from Singareni. The officials clarified that Singareni could not supply G9 coal because the previous government had not participated in the coal block auctions. The officials also told the CM that 14 coal blocks at Singareni have already been closed.
Meanwhile, a fact-finding team of BRS will visit major thermal power plants and Singareni headquarters on Thursday.
The team comprising senior leaders, former ministers and MLAs will visit major thermal power plants across Telangana and the Singareni headquarters to conduct a ground-level assessment.
The BRS said that the exercise, undertaken on the directions of BRS Working President, K.T. Rama Rao, aims to ascertain facts on power-sector management, the progress of projects and any delays or operational issues under the state government.
The BRS teams will review the progress of the plants, power generation capacity and implementation status with officials.
Following the field visits, the BRS will prepare a detailed report on the status of the projects built during the KCR government and present the findings to counter what the party alleged was misinformation surrounding these projects.
–IANS
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