Scrap all MOU’s with private companies—PSEB Engineers Association
Vinod Kumar Gupta, 10-Jul-2011
Scrap all MOU’s with private companies—PSEB Engineers Association

Sunday July 10, 2011

Bhatinda

PSEB Engineers Association has demanded scrapping of all Memorandum of Understandings (MOU’s) signed with private companies including NTPC by Punjab Government for setting up thermal plants.

It was decided at the meeting that engineers would observe 2 hour 'Pen down & Tool Down" on 26th July and will bring a white paper on the lopsided policy of the Punjab government to hand over its entire future generation plants to private. The meeting was attended by about 275 engineers.

H S Bedi President of Association said these MOUs are against the National Tariff Policy and guidelines issued by Central Electricity Regulatory Commission which mandate purchase of power only through competitive bidding. CERC has established that cost of power from plants set up under MOU route are higher than the plants set up through competitive bidding process or under state sector . Punjab Electricity Regulatory Commission has also raised serious observations on Punjab Generation Policy under which thermal plants are being awarded through MOU route.

The engineers at the meeting condemned the PSPCL management and the Punjab Government for totally ignoring the importance of setting up of state owned thermal plants. The state government by handing over all future thermal plants to private sector is trying to create private sector monopoly in generation which will be detrimental to the interests of general public of Punjab.

Baldev Singh said that with the commissioning of new plants , the share of own generation will go down to less than 19% from present 52 % which will be totally inadequate to run the grid operations in an economical manner. Punjab is the only state which is dreaming of becoming power surplus without investing single paise in any project and has not planned even one MW under state sector.

Bhupinder Singh General Secretary of Association alleged that Punjab government is itself responsible to great extend for creating this financial mess in PSPCL. During first 3 months of this year the Punjab Govt. was required to give a subsidy of Rs. 1065 crore but paid only Rs. 662 crore.

Association appealed to Chief Minister, Punjab to grant immediate approval to PSPCL proposal to set up 1320 MW thermal plant under state sector.