Shillong,Aug 11: While the North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Limited (NEEPCO) has expressed its inability to implement the 500 megawatt thermal power project in Meghalaya, Kynshi stage-II, which is a 325 megawatt hydroelectric power project will be scrapped by the government.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Power Minister AT Mondal said that NEEPCO will not go for any thermal power project as it wants to focus on green and clean energy. Moreover there are issues related to coal linkages
As far as Kynshi state II is concerned, the party is not interested to carry on with the project, Mondal said.
He also said the project will be scrapped very soon. “This is because the independent power producer came up with a new model, which they are saying will be more viable. They want amendments in the old project.”
“But the thing is that as the project is a new one and with new ideas and new technology you cannot go for amendment to each and every line. So what we told is that we will scrap the old MoU and we will go through the new MoU, frame it and we will execute the MoU,” Mondal said.
The Jaypee Meghalaya Power Ltd, New Delhi had also expressed its inability to continue with the project due to the presence of uranium deposits.
The minister expressed sadness that not a single project has been taken up by private power developers in the state.
“We have signed so many memorandums but I am very sad to say today that not a single memorandum under which a project has been taken up by an independent power producer has come up,” he said.
According to him, in the process some MoUs became obsolete and the government had to cancel them.
Earlier in the day, HYC met the minister and stressed the need of taking up thermal projects in South West Khasi Hills and reviving Kynshi-stage 2.
In a memorandum to the power minister, HYC South West Khasi Hills president Arbok Kharjahrin urged him to take steps for initiating the Rangmaw Hydel project.