The Hindu Business Line : Reddy to convene meeting of biomass power producers

THE Union Minister of State for Non-Conventional Energy Sources, Mr Vilas Muttemwar, said that the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, had agreed to convene a meeting of biomass power producers in the State to sort out their problems.

Talking to newspersons here on Sunday, Mr Muttemwar said that biomass power producers in the State were facing problems such as reduction in tariff rates and inspection of the plant load factor (PLF) for every half-an-hour duration for fixation of tariff rates.

He wanted the State Government to reconsider such decisions, which were making the functioning of biomass power plants unviable.

The Andhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission, based on recommendations made by the Transmission Corporation of Andhra Pradesh, reduced the purchase price per unit of biomass power from Rs 3.48 paise to Rs 2.84 paise per unit at 80 per cent PLF and Rs 1.47 paise per unit for the next 20 per cent PLF.

The State Government had also imposed a ban on third party sale, raised wheeling charges from 2 per cent to 28.4 per cent and asked the biomass power producers to pay 50 paise surcharge on each unit of power produced.

When asked whether the Centre would consider payment to the biomass power producers the difference amount in the actual purchase price of Rs 2.84 per unit and the original recommended price of Rs 3.51 as a part of its policy to promote generation of non-conventional energy, the Minister said that it was not possible. He would, however, take up the issue with the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh.

On Friday last, members of the Biomass Energy Developers Association of Andhra Pradesh, staged a protest before the office of APTransco. They had also made a representation to the President, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, and the Prime Minister recently stating, "Please take back our industries and return our investments."

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