In a bid to get coal allocation for the State government’s much-delayed 1,600 MW (2x800 MW) thermal power project at Godhna in Chhattisgarh, Karnataka Power Corporation Limited (KPCL) will sign a Joint Venture (JV) agreement with  National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) for execution of the project.

Speaking to reporters in Bangalore, Energy Minister D K Shivakumar said the KPCL has already entered into an agreement with L&T for the project. However, it has now been decided to go ahead with the project with the State-owned NTPC following that Centre stating that it was not possible for allocation of coal for the project if a private player is involved in the JV. 

“Hence we had decided to drop L&T and go with KPCL,” Shivakumar said. KPCL will have 51 per cent and NTPC will have 49 per cent stake in the project, he added.

Shivakumar said the Centre’s stand was conveyed to him during his recent discussion with Union Minister of State for Power, Coal, New and Renewable Energy Piyush Goyal in New Delhi. While the MoU for the project was signed in June 2010, the project is yet to take off.  Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) clearance for the project has been pending on account of non-allocation of coal for the project.

Shivakumar said he also sought from Goyal coal allocation for the Bellary-3 thermal plant from the Mahanadi Coal Fields and for the Yermarus (2x700 MW) thermal plant.

 The State also sought allocation of coal block for the 4x660 MW thermal plant in Gulbarga. All statutory clearances excluding MoEF clearance have been obtained for the project, he said.

Shivakumar said a meeting of farmers’ representatives who have been protesting against Kudgi Super Thermal Power Project (KSTPP) at Kudgi, near Bijapur would be convened soon in Bangalore.