NEW DELHI: The Delhi Cabinet on Monday approved de-commissioning of four coal-based units and closure of the Indraprastha thermal power station after the commissioning of a new 500 MW unit at Badarpur. At a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit it was also decided that the loss in installed capacity would be compensated by the addition of around 750 MW at the proposed gas-based power plant in Bamnauli.

Following the Cabinet meeting, Ms. Dikshit said the four coal-based units at the Indraprastha thermal power station with a combined generation capacity of 247.5 MW would be de-commissioned as soon as commercial operation of the 500 MW unit at Badarpur began.

The Cabinet also decided to incur only very essential expenditure on the existing units for safe operation till their closure and to initiate action for disposal of plants and machinery.

The Chief Minister said two units at the Indraprastha thermal power station had outlived their utility as they had been in operation for about 40 years and the Union Environment and Forest Ministry had permitted continuation of the existing coal-based Indraprastha power station till December 31, 2010.

Even the consultant appointed by the Delhi Government's Power Department had concluded that the plant had become unviable for further operation in its present condition and any investment for improvement of the generation level of the plant would not be techno-economically feasible.

Ms. Dikshit said in view of de-commissioning of the existing coal-based units the Delhi Government would initiate action for capacity addition through the 750 MW gas-based power plant in Bamnauli. Incidentally the Delhi Development Authority had in mid-April allotted land to the Delhi Government for setting up this 750 MW plant at Bamnauli.

The proposal had been under consideration of the Delhi Government as in view of the new Master Plan for Delhi-2021 large-scale urbanisation is proposed to take place in this region. To facilitate establishment of this plant and also other gas-based plants at Bawana, the Delhi Government had also signed a memorandum of understanding with M/s Petronet to finalise the supply and purchase agreement for gas in the next couple of months.

Delhi would be requiring gas to fire plants that would generate about 2,000 MW of power.

Meanwhile, in lieu of the allotment of land for the Bamnauli plant, the DDA wants the Delhi Government to transfer to it surplus land available with the Pragati, Indraprastha and Rajghat power plants so that it can develop that land for commercial use and raise money that would be required for cleaning up the Yamuna and developing the riverfront.

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