News: Tatas, Reliance in fray for private transmission lines

(PTI 06/04/2006) New Delhi - Corporate giants Tatas, Essar, Reliance Energy and L&T are among the dozen companies in race to build India's first fully independent private power transmission lines in Gujarat and Maharashtra at an estimated investment of Rs 1,500 crore.

State-run transmission monopoly Power Grid Corporation of India, which had invited bids for the independent grid lines associated with western region strengthening scheme in November last year, will select the private company by June this year so as to complete the two projects by 2009.

"Tata Power, Reliance, Essar Power, Larsen & Toubro, GMR group, Kalptaru Power, Gammon India and Jyothi Structures, China Light & Power and four Spanish companies including Isolex Wat and Abengoa are in the fray for these projects," Power Grid Chairman and Managing Director R P Singh said here.

Singh said a total of 28 bid documents were purchased and of those 12 companies participated in the pre-bid conference for each of these projects.

"We will have another pre-bid conference on April 18 and the bids would be opened in June this year," he said.

While one project is for building sub-stations and grid lines in southern Maharashtra at a cost of Rs 1,000 crore, the other will be set up in Gujarat at an investment of about Rs 500 crore.

When executed, these would be India's first transmission lines built fully by private players. PGCIL has so far formed joint ventures to build some grid lines. In fact, the only joint venture in transmission operational at present is between PGCIL and Tata Power to get power from Tala hydroelectric project in Bhutan.