Promit Mukherjee

Mumbai: JSW Energy Ltd, the power generating subsidiary of the Sajjan Jindal-controlled JSW Group, has achieved financial closure for its first phase of expansion.

The company is aiming to add 2,880 mw by December 2010 under the first phase of its plans.

JSW Energy has also been planning an IPO but choppy market conditions have held it back.

N K Jain, vice chairman, said the company plans to set up 3 power projects under its first phase of expansion. Apart from financial closure, the company has also tied up fuel supply, Jain said.

The funds required for the first phase would close to Rs 13,000 crore based on the thumb rule that to generate 1 mw, an investment of Rs 4.5 crore is required.

JSW Energy was formed in 1994 as a joint venture between Jindal Group and Tractebel SA of Belgium. The name of the company then was Jindal Tractebel Power Co Ltd.

In December 2001, Tractebel sold its stake to ICICI, IDBI and the Jindal group of companies, which later bought out the financial institutions.

Jain said JSW Energy intends to increase its power generation capacity up to 13,500 mw by the end of 2020.

A second round of expansion will be taken up for consideration once the first phase begins.

Projects coming up in the first phase include a 600 mw power plant at Vijayanagar, Karnataka, a 1,080 mw plant in Rajasthan and another 1,200 mw plant at Ratnagiri, Maharashtra.

While the Rajasthan plant will use lignite as feedstock, the other two plants will run on imported coal, Jain said.

“We will be requiring close to 10 million tonnes per annum of imported coal for the two plants which we will be sourcing from Indonesia,” he said.

Jain said the IPO is also expected later this year. “We are already pursuing with the Securities and Exchange Board of India on this,” he said.

Source : DNA