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GMR Energy buys Emco powergen subsidiary

Thane-based transformer manufacturer Emco Ltd has sold its stake in unlisted power generation subsidiary Emco Energy to Bangalore-based GMR Energy.

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Thane-based transformer manufacturer Emco Ltd has sold its stake in unlisted power generation subsidiary Emco Energy to Bangalore-based GMR Energy.

Rajesh Jain, chairman and managing director, Emco Ltd, told DNA: “The subsidiary has been sold in order to focus on bigger power generation plans instead of a smaller plant that the subsidiary was pursuing.”

He did not reveal financial details of the transaction except saying “it will enhance shareholder value”.

Emco Energy is building a 520 mw coal-based power plant in Warora near Chandrapur, Maharashtra. The financial closure for the project has been achieved and the first phase of 135 mw was likely to be operational by December 2009.

The first phase of the project is to be followed by the implementation of another unit of 135 mw to be operational by December 2010 and a final unit of 250 mw to be commissioned after one year of the second phase.

GMR Eneggy’s CEO Raaj Kumar told DNA the acquisition is “in complete synergy with GMR’s plan to develop thermal capacities in various parts of the country.”

This is the first project for GMR in Maharashtra and the coal linkage for the acquired unit is said to be from the South Central Coalfields.
“We will start reviewing the status of the project and take it forward from there. We hope to complete the project in 30 months to make it up and running. The thumb rule for these project is about Rs 4-4.2 crore per megawatt and the cost of this project should also be in the same range,” Kumar said.

Though the earlier plan of the Emco was to commission the first unit by December 2008, but the company failed to do so because of unfavourable conditions of the market, including pressures on re-negotiating contracts for equipment supply from a Chinese company from where it was sourcing the boiler-turbine-generator package.
Jain said by selling the subsidiary, the company has unlocked the value and it can now pursue larger opportunities in the power generation business.

“We will firm up our power generation plans in the next five-six months,” he said.

The company has also retained its core power generation team which was working on the power plant and will be using its services to take its power plans forward.

Though the company is yet to finalise its power generation plans, almost a year back the company had signed an agreement with the Chhattisgarh government for setting up a 660 mw power plant in the state.

The Rs 2,400 crroe project was being planned with a Kolkata-based steel trading firm as its joint venture partner.

Jain had earlier told DNA the company was also looking at a coastal site in the country to set up a thermal power plant based on coal imported from Indonesia.

It holds 37.5% stake in a coal mine in the Kalimantan region of Indonesia and plans to start production around September.
The company bought the mine in 2007 for $18 million or about Rs 76 crore and had total reserves of 105 million tonnes. Emco has a share of 40 million tonnes in the mine.
 
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