Two power plants in AP critical due to gas shortage: GVK

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GVK's two gas-based power plants in Andhra Pradesh are reaching 'critical' stage in terms of Plant Load Factor (PLF) due of shortage of gas and their expansion has been put on hold, a senior company official said here on Wednesday.

The company's comments come amid the government trying to resolve the issue of gas supplies to power plants.

The GVK plants, Gautami and Jegurupadu, are running at around 50 per cent PLF and any further dip may force the company to shut them down to protect the performance of the units in the long run, said the official requesting anonymity.

"Presently the projects are running at very low PLF. It is not good. It is around 50 per cent... As designed capacity, the efficiency at which it operates will come down. Of course below 50 per cent PLF you cannot operate the plant at all. If it is the same scenario then I don't know we would be able to run the machines," the official told agencies.

The KG-D6 block has hit an all-time low production of about 28 million standard cubic meters per day as the firm shut six wells due to water and sand ingress.

According to recent reports, the output from KG-D6 is short of the 70.39 mmscmd-level (61.88 mmscmd from D1 and D3 and 8.5 mmscmd from the MA field) envisaged by now as per the field development plan approved in 2006.

Also, as per an Oil Ministry report, 14.80 mmscmd of the gas output is being sold to fertiliser plants and 16.62 mmscmd to power plants. The remaining 3.20 mmscmd is consumed by other sectors.

The company had to put expansion plans of both the power projects on hold as there was no assured gas supply from any source, the official said.

Gautami power project at Peddapuram in Andhra Pradesh was to be expanded to about 800 mw from the existing 464 mw with an outlay of about Rs 3,200 crore. Similarly, the Jegurupadu power project, which currently has about 479 mw, too was taken up for expansion to 800 mw.

"We are not going ahead with the expansions as of now. Unless the gas situation becomes clear and improves, we will not be taking up expansion plans.

"Even the Centre has asked gas-based power projects not to venture into any more expansion plans unless gas availability improves," the official added.