By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, September 30, 2016 : Essar Power Orissa Ltd, a subsidiary of Essar Power Ltd has successfully commissioned the first phase (2×30 Mw) of the 120 Mw imported coal based power plant at Paradip.

The synchronisation of the 30 Mw second unit with the Odisha state grid was done on Wednesday, Gridco sources said.

With this, Essar Power’s installed capacity now stands at 4,705 Mw.

The Paradip plant is a captive power plant to meet the requirements of Essar Steel India’s 12 million tonne pellet plant in Paradip and a beneficiation plant at Dabuna, which are connected through a 253-km slurry pipeline.

Mr KVB Reddy, CEO, EPOL, said: “Our focus is on completing all our under construction projects in the quickest possible time and achieve our stated target of operationalising 6,100 MW so that we can fully leverage on efficiencies of scale. With that goal in mind, the completion of Phase I of the Paradip project is an important milestone that we are delighted to reach.”

This project uses eco-friendly fluidised bed combustion technology boilers that result in lower emissions. The boiler is designed to use both domestic as well as imported coal. The world-class equipment ensures maximum availability and reliability for the Essar Steel units in Odisha.

With the commissioning of Unit 2, Essar Steel will be able to further reduce its power bill, and enhance its competitive edge, Reddy claimed.

Essar Power Ltd is one of India’s largest private sector power producers with over 20 years operating track record. It owns power plants in India and Canada with a total generation capacity of 6,100 Mw, of which 4,705 Mw is operational. Of the total operational capacity, 3105 Mw is coal-based, while 1,600 Mw is gas-based.

The operating plants in India are at Mahan, Hazira, Salaya, Vadinar and Paradip. A 1,200 Mw plant at Tori in Jharkhand state is under development.