Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) has approved revisions to be incorporated in the transmission licence granted to Torrent Power Grid Ltd (TPGL) with respect to the “Khavda II-D” transmission project that is being implemented on RTM basis.
In a recent order, CERC has said that the transmission licence issued to TPGL will hold true even after change in project scope. CERC has directed that the original transmission licence issued in May 2007 will be valid after necessary endorsements are made on the licence.
In the revised project scope, some new transmission line and substation elements have been added. For instance, one transmission line that will now be part of the project is the double-circuit LILO of Pirana (PGCIL) to Pirana (TPGL) at 765/400kV Ahmedabad substation through a 400kV multi-circuit line with twin HTLS conductor along with OPGW.
Torrent Power Grid Ltd is a joint venture between Torrent Power (equity: 74 per cent) and Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (equity: 26 per cent). In May 2007, TPGL was granted licence to construct, maintain and operate a transmission scheme related to evacuation from Torrent Power’s 1,100-mw SUGEN combined cycle power project at Akhakhol in Gujarat. (See photograph)
The transmission scheme envisaged under “Khavda II-D” was entrusted to TPGL under the RTM route as it involved reconductoring of a transmission line that was part of the SUGEN evacuation scheme, which was fully commissioned by TPGL in April 2011.
Originally, the Khavda II-D scheme officially termed as “’Transmission scheme for evacuation of 4.5 GW RE injection at Khavda PS under Phase-II-Part D” was to come up under the tariff-based competitive bidding (TBCB) mode and RECPDCL was appointed as the bid process coordinator. It was subsequently denotified as a TBCB scheme with approval granted to the RTM mode of implementation.
The broader transmission scheme for evacuation of 4.5 GW RE injection at Khavda PS under Phase-II has four components designated as Part A, Part B, Part C and Part D.
While Part D, discussed in this story, will come up on RTM basis through Torrent Power Grid Ltd, the remaining three parts will be implemented under the TBCB route.
Part A is being developed by “Khavda II-A Transmission Ltd,” a wholly-owned subsidiary of Adani Energy Solutions Ltd (AESL). The project is under implementation with scheduled completion date of March 28, 2025.
Part B and Part C are being developed by Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (PGCIL), through two project SPVs – “Khavda II-B Transmission Ltd” and “Khavda II-C Transmission Ltd”. These two projects have a common completion date of March 21, 2025. These SPVs have been since renamed to “Powergrid Khavda II-B Transmission Ltd” and “Powergrid Khavda II-D Transmission Ltd.”
Also read: CERC Grants Licence To NRSS XXIX Transmission For RTM Project
Featured photograph (source: Torrent Power) shows the 1,100-mw SUGEN power plant of Torrent Power, in Gujarat. The “Khavda II-D” transmission system discussed in this story will involve upgrade of elements in the existing power evacuation system associated with the SUGEN plant.