New Delhi, Feb 28 (IANS) Finance Minister Arun Jaitley Saturday said his government plans to build five new ultra mega power projects totalling 20,000 MW which will unlock investment of up to Rs.1 lakh crore. Economists, however, seemed sceptic.
The step has been planned with the aim of electrification of the remaining 20,000 villages in the country by 2020.
"The government proposes to set up five new ultra mega power projects, each of 4,000 MWs in the plug-and-play mode.
"All clearances and linkages will be in place before the project is awarded by a transparent auction system. This should unlock investments to the extent of Rs.1 lakh crore," Jaitley told the Lok Sabha while presenting the budget for 2015-16.
He said his government will also consider similar plug-and-play projects in other infrastructure projects such as roads, ports, railway lines, airports and other sectors.
The minister said the second unit of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant will be commissioned in 2015-16.
Even as the government was moving towards enhancing the national power capacity, economists seemed sceptic.
"Prima facie, we have not seen any concrete measures in the budget for renewable energy. Unlike rail and roads, tax free bonds have not been specifically proposed for renewable energy," said Anish De from market researcher firm KPMG.
He said the general emphasis on renewable energy and re-stating of the MNRE target to 175 GW by 2022 comprising 100 GW of solar, 60 GW of wind and 15 GW of other technologies was not adequate to make capacity creation happen in reality.
Economist Abhirup Sarkar also echoed a similar feeling.
"There hasn't been considerable progress on the public-private partnership model. There are concerns from private investors in infrastructural projects as the price chargeable to the consumer is regulated by the authorities," Sarkar, a professor of the Indian Statistical Institute, told IANS.
He said the gestation period in the power sector may go up to 20 years and investors might not be keen about making any large investments in the segment.
"In a PPP model, the only government equity is land and the rest is from the investor or developer. With such high gestation period and a controlled situation from the government, I don't think investors will be keen," he said.
People are afraid to travel in trains for fear of Corona virus
Following the instructions of the government, the railway has started many trains. But the statis
Earthquake tremors have been felt in India 948 times in the last 9 months from January to Septemb
New Delhi, March 5 (IANS) Delhiites experienced a nippy T
The 12th match of IPL 15 will be played between Lucknow Super Giants and Sunrisers Hyderabad from
After UAE, now in another country, employees will have to work only for four days. Yes, according
Today is the seventh day of the Russia-Ukraine war. The common citizens of India may not have any
Congress on Women's Reservation: Sonia Gandhi states,
Senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi has offered a brief reaction regarding the Women’s Rese
President greets Bulgaria on National Day
New Delhi, March 3 (IANS) President Pranab Mukherjee Tuesday greeted his Bulgarian counterpart
Jaitley to inaugurate 5th national meet on community radio
New Delhi, March 13 (IANS) Information and Broadcasting Minister Arun Jaitley will inaugurate t
The strike of transporters and private bus operators continued for the second day on Tuesday in p
