Delay in setting up BPTS II resulted in Rs 1,391 cr loss: CAG

The Karnataka Power Corporation Limited has accrued a whopping loss of Rs 1,391.33 crore due to delay in the construction of the Bellary Thermal Power Station (BTPS) second unit.

The loss has been recorded by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) in its report on public sector undertakings in the State.

The report by CAG, which was tabled in the Legislature on Friday, states that the delay of 27 months in completing the project had forced the government to procure energy from private sources at a higher rate to meet the demand gap.

Accordingly, Rs 1,518.69 crore worth of power was purchased to meet the requirements of the State during the delayed period between 2010- 2013.

“The actual expenditure includes the interest paid on the loan borrowed for the project, which increased by an additional Rs 178.70 crore and the same will be passed on to the consumers,” the report says.

KPCL had conceived the project to make a capacity addition of 1,000 megawatts by setting up two units of 500MW at Ballari. KPCL had hoped to save Rs 1,257 crore every year by commissioning the project.

Stating that both the units failed to meet the deadline, the report said there was a delay in commissioning even the first unit by 15 months, which resulted in an additional burden of Rs 1,257 crore. The same was passed on to the consumers.

Giving its report on the power purchase by the State, CAG has said that the purchase of energy at higher cost by the Electricity Supply Companies (Escom) resulted in extra expenditure of Rs 1,434.13 crore.

Deficiency in survey

On the State’s irrigation projects, the CAG said that of the 78 works on 17 projects, 14 works were delayed by about 57 months and 39 works by about 62 months. The delay was due to deficiency in survey and design, tendering and land acquisition process, it said.

The report also points out to various non-performing projects taken up by Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation Limited (KSTDCL), which led to a cumulative loss of over Rs 31 crore. The report says that KSTDC suffered losses due to the Golden Chariot project and also due to unutilised tourism infrastructure facilities in places like Kemmanagundi hill station.