Govt to corporatise DVC, asks PSU to expedite unbundling of 3 biz segments

New Delhi: The government will corporatise Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC), unbundling it into three entities for generation, transmission and distribution, to bring in greater operational efficiency, DVC Chairman S Suresh Kumar said on Wednesday. He said that during a review meeting, Union Minister for Power Manohar Lal Khattar asked the PSU to expedite the unbundling of the three segments. Kumar added that the ownership of the PSU will remain with the government even after corporatisation.

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At the review meeting, Khattar also asked the PSU to consider raising funds via an Initial Public Offer (IPO) for expansion.

DVC asked to ramp up renewable energy portfolio

During the meeting, Khattar also stressed upon the need for DVC to increase its renewable energy portfolio. DVC has plans to install an additional capacity of nearly 10,000 MW, ramping up its total capacity to about 16,700 MW. This will include 3,720 MW of thermal power, 4,000 MW of solar power, and 2,500 MW of pumped storage project (PSP). The total capex is estimated to be between Rs 50,000-60,000 crore. Out of DVC’s nine thermal and hydro power stations, five are in Jharkhand, while the rest are located in neighbouring West Bengal.

According to sources present at the meeting with the Union minister, DVC raised issues of grade slippages of coal supplies by Coal India subsidiaries, which have ramifications on generation cost and power tariff, said a report by PTI. “We have also updated certain aspects of the Fuel Supply Agreement of coal to keep pace with demand. We also sought the ministry's help in signing Power Purchase Agreements for the future capacities and recovering legacy dues,” a source said, declining to be quoted.

DVC has about Rs 300-400 crore in legacy dues out of Rs 1,000 crore with the Jharkhand state government. DVC officials sought co-operation from the minister for resolving the financial issues faced by it. The minister assured the company of full support from the government for its expansion plans and for the recovery of its legacy dues.

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