India Power commissions 36-mw solar plant in Uttarakhand

India Power Corporation has commissioned a solar power plant of 36 mw in Uttarakhand with an investment of Rs 225 crore.

This follows its successful acquisition of 1,000 mw thermal power plant of Meenakshi Energy Private, now known as Meenakshi Energy, owned by French power giant ENGIE, the company said in a statement today.

According to the statement, the joint venture between one of the largest German power utilities, Uniper, and India Power has started its operations with management of power plants.

These, along with the commissioning of 150 mw unit of the 450 mw at the company's Haldia plant, lower T&D losses and improving profitability, are expected to result in multi-fold growth in India Power's business and maximising shareholders' value in the process, it said.

The consolidated estimated enterprise and asset value of India Power is now close to Rs 15,000 crore, and with a combined debt of around Rs 6,000 crore, the company is now one of the less leveraged power generation and utility companies in the country, it added.

Hemant Kanoria, Chairman, India Power, said: "We are now on a high growth trajectory, which will improve our financial performance further and enhance shareholders' value. The power sector still has its challenges, but we clearly see growth prospects."

The board at its meeting here today approved the company's audited financial accounts for the year ended March 2017 and recommended a dividend of 5 per cent, it said.

Consolidated profit after tax (PAT) was Rs 37.29 crore in 2016-17. Profit before tax (PBT) improved to Rs 61.96 crore, from Rs 46.55 crore in 2015-16, during the last financial year. Gross revenue for 2016-17 was at Rs 726.68 crore compared to 760.99 a year earlier, it added.

The board has also appointed Raghav Raj Kanoria managing director of India Power.

India Power is also setting up a 450-mw (150 mw x 3) power plant in Haldia of West Bengal. The first unit has been commissioned, the second unit will start in 2017-18 and the final one by the end of next financial year. The investment is around Rs 3,500 crore.

The company has established itself as an integrated utility firm, it said.

(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)