CCEA approves ₹5,607 crore equity investments by Coal India arms in two thermal power projects

South Eastern Coalfields Ltd (SECL) will set up a 660 MW thermal power plant through a joint venture of SECL and MPPGCL

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on January 18 approved equity investments of ₹5,607 crore by State-owned South Eastern Coalfields and Mahanadi Coalfields to set up two thermal power projects with total generation capacities of 2,260 MW.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, an official statement said.

According to the statement, South Eastern Coalfields Ltd (SECL) will set up a 660 MW thermal power plant through a joint venture of SECL and MPPGCL.

Similarly, Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL) will set up a 2x800 MW thermal power plant through Mahanadi Basin Power Ltd (MBPL - a subsidiary of MCL).

There will be an equity capital of ₹823 crore (plus or minus 20%) by SECL with an estimated project capex of ₹5,600 crore (accuracy of plus or minus 20%) for the proposed 660 MW supercritical thermal power plant through JV of SECL and MPPGCL at Amarkantak Thermal Power Station in Madhya Pradesh.

The CCEA has also approved an investment of ₹4,784 crore equity capital (plus or minus 20%) by MCL for the proposed 2×800 MW supercritical thermal power plant in Sundargarh District, Odisha, with an estimated project capex of ₹15,947 crore (accuracy of plus or minus 20%) through MBPL.

It has given approval to MBPL, an SPV of MCL to set up the 2×800 MW Super-Critical Thermal Power Plant.

The CCEA also approved equity investment by CIL beyond 30% of its net worth in the JV of SECL-MPPGCL (₹823 crore plus or minus 20%) in the two projects.

Coal India Ltd (CIL), the largest coal mining company in the world, will set up the following two pithead thermal power plants, through its subsidiaries, with a view to providing cheaper power.