Punjab govt to buy private Thermal power plant, says CM Bhagwant Mann

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday said his government will buy a private thermal power plant in the state.

However, Mann said the details in this regard will be shared soon.

The chief minister shared information with regard to the purchase of the coal-fired thermal power plant on his Twitter handle.

"Sharing good news with Punjabis...Punjab government is buying a private thermal plant in Punjab...details soon," said Mann in a tweet in Punjabi.

Though the chief minister did not share much information about the thermal plant, the state-owned power utility Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) was one of the 12 bidders for taking over the 540 MW Goindwal thermal power plant in Tarn Taran after corporate insolvency proceedings were initiated against its owner GVK Power.

Later, in a statement, Mann said the state government has placed its bid to purchase the private power plant, and very soon, the process will be completed.

This will help in making the state power surplus by augmenting its power production, he said.

Mann said at present state-owned thermal plants at Lehra Mohabbat and Rupnagar produce 1,760 Mega Watt (MW) of power, and with the purchasing of the private power plant, production capacity of another 540 MW will be added to it.

The chief minister said with the resumption of coal supply from the Pachwara coal mine, the state has surplus coal, which can be used to run these thermal plants effectively.

He said for the first time in the history of the state, the Punjab government has put a bid for purchasing a private thermal power plant, whereas in the past the earlier governments had sold these properties.

Mann said this is unprecedented as for the first time the state government has started this reverse trend to buy a private plant.

He further said the state has enough supply and stock of coal through which these plants can be run efficiently.

Last month, Mann had said that the state government would bid to purchase a private power plant for the first time, and it has enough coal stock to run the plant.

A three-member sub-committee comprising power minister Harbhajan Singh, Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema and Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khuddian was formed to decide on the financial bid.

The 540 MW thermal power plant is an independent power plant and is spread over 1,100 acres of land in Goindwal Sahib in Tarn Taran. This plant was set up during the SAD-BJP government.