SHILLONG, APRIL 30: Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MeECL) director (generation) Elias Lyngdoh on Tuesday said the much-delayed Myntdu-Leshka Hydro Electric Project was on its way to becoming a success story as all issues surrounding the project have been resolved.
Admitting that the even the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) had questioned the competency of the MeECL in its former avatar as Meghalaya State Electricity Board to execute the project, Lyngdoh said those concerns have been addressed and all hurdles in the way of successful completion of the project have been removed.
He said the delay in the completion and commissioning of the project was due to several reasons, including continuous rainfall and flood at the site, which is located in the same belt as Cherrapunjee and other geological reasons. Citing an example, Lyngdoh said while the initial detailed project report had estimated a requirement of 1000 T of steel, the actual quantity required was a whopping 15,000 T as it was found that the rock formation at the site was of a different nature altogether.
Meanwhile, none of the Central public sector units are willing to supply power to the corporation until the previous dues are cleared. Chief minister Mukul Sangma had recently asserted that the government would not bail out the MeECL from its financial bungling unless it improves its efficiency and stops lobbying for power projects.
Though the project with a capacity of 126 MW has been generating just 10 MW of power as of now, Lyngdoh said it would run to its capacity during the monsoon. On completion, the project would generate about 372.69 million units of electricity annually from the first two units.
The estimated cost at 1999 price level was Rs 363.08 crore and the revised cost at 2006 price level is Rs 671.29 crore, inclusive of the interest during construction, he said. On completion, the project is estimated to cost Rs 1173.13 crore.
A dam has been built on the mighty Myntdu, which flows across Jowai, at Leshka, where the river enters Bangladesh as part of the project.
The once power surplus Meghalaya is reeling under shortage of power. The people of the state are forced to live with frequent load shedding. (By Our Reporter)
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