NTPC to move apex court on Ansaldo bid ruling

NTPC has decided to move the Supreme Court against the Delhi high court’s order, which upheld the plea of Ansaldo-Gammom consortium to bid for providing super-critical power equipment to the state-run power company.

“We have sent this matter to the Solicitor General. We have received their comment and we would soon be approaching the Supreme Court,” Arup Roy Choudhury, chairman and managing director of NTPC Ltd, said.

On March 1, the High Court had ruled against NTPC’s decision to disqualify Ansaldo Caldaie India from tendering for an equipment supply contract.

The court had said that based on the tender documents, NTPC could not exclude Ansaldo, a subsidiary of Gammon India, from the tendering process.

NTPC had invited bids for its Rs19,000 crore, 800 mw supercritical tender.

Through the tender, NTPC plans to procure 11 boilers, nine for its own projects and two for the Damodar Valley Corporation.

According to the tender clauses, the lowest bidder for boilers will be given an order for six units.

If state-run Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (Bhel) is not the lowest bidder, the government will award it the order for the remaining five units if it agrees to match the lowest bid.

In case Bhel does not match the bid, others would get a chance in the order of bid rankings.

NTPC had floated a bulk tender for 660 mw in October 2009. Only Bhel and L&T had bid for the boilers but the package was re-tendered in June, 2010.