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Independent power producers cry foul
Himachal’s independent power producers (IPPs) have sought intervention of the state and Central governments to treat small hydropower projects as “white category projects”, exempting them from the time- consuming clearances from the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) and the state pollution board.
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There are more than 100 IPPs that have suffered huge losses as they spent large amounts but achieved zero results as the projects did not get forest clearances. “If small hydropower projects are treated as ‘white category projects’, this will help them get soft bank loans and help tap the state’s power potential,” they added.
The IPPs resented that the state revenue share from hydropower has come down to 11.37 per cent in 2015-16 from 39.56 per cent in 2007-08 due to delays in execution of power projects in the state.
Hailing the state government’s proposed changes in the hydropower policy, 2006, the Bonafide Himachal Power Producers Association has urged Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and Union Power Minister Piyush Goel to treat the small hydropower projects (less than 25-MW capacity) as “white category power projects” and exempt these from forest clearances from MoEF and certificate from the state pollution control board.
Apart from putting single window clearance in place, the procedure to monitor the 15 per cent water discharge in the river should be simplified as it is adding to the cost of the project, said Rajesh Sharma, president of the Association, and members Brij Mohan, Manish Sharma and Sansar Chand after their meeting with the officials of the Directorate of Energy and Himurja.
They want the Centre to allow developers to raise forest on 40 per cent of waste or barren forest land under compensatory afforestation, not on the non-forest land, which is not available in the state.
They have also urged the NITI Aayog to direct the MoEF to pay heed to the problems faced by the IPPs in the state. “The MoEF is asking us to acquire 17-m width forest or private land corridor for the laying of transmission line whereas it is objecting to plant forest on the barren forest land, which is self-contradictory,” Sharma said. They demanded that the state regulator should decide the power tariff on small hydropower projects on the pre-subsidised cost of the project. Paul Byron Authentic Jersey
