Tamnar power station

The Tamnar power station is a 1,000 megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plant located in Tamnar, Raigarh, Chhattisgarh. The Tamnar II project is a 2,400 MW addition currently under construction at the same location.

Location
The satellite photo below shows the location of the existing Tamnar plant.

The satellite photo below (date unknown) shows construction beginning on Tamnar II (units 5 and 6), located several hundred meters southwest of the existing plant:

Background on 2400 MW Tamnar II expansion (Units 5-8)
Jindal Power, a subsidiary of Jindal Steel & Power, estimated in 2009 that the cost of the project would be RS134,100.38 million ($US2,980 billion at 2011 rates). The company proposes that the power station comprise four subcritical 600MW generating units.

The company stated in 2009 that "we plan to finance the Tamnar II Project in two phases of 1,200 MW each. We have entered into two MoUs with the Government of Chhattisgarh (GoC) for the development of this power project."

In late 2011, the company had begun soliciting multiple tenders for various aspects of plant construction. As shown in the photo above (undated), at least two units of the project are in construction.

In September 2013, the Central Electricity Authority reported that all four 600 MW units were under construction. Unit 1 was synchronized in September 30, 2013 and commisioning was expected in late 2013. Commissioning of Unit 2 was expected in the March or April of 2014. Commisioning of Unit 3 was expected in March 2015. Commissioning of Unit 4 was expected in September 2015.

Protests against expansion plans
For more details on this section, see Imprisonment of two Chhattisgarh activists over opposition to Jindal Power's Tamnar II Project.

On May 28, 2011, two indigenous rights activists, Ramesh Agrawal and Dr Harihar Patel, were arrested in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh and denied release on bail.

The state police charged the two men with “circulating defamatory material”, “disrupting public order” and “causing alarm and panic among the public” at a May 8, 2010 mandatory public consultation, held by the state pollution board at Tamnar village, relating to the Tamnar II Project proposed by Jindal Steel and Power.

Agrawal and Patel expressed concerns that the expansion would lead to the forcible acquisition of lands from the surrounding local communities by the authorities. The two activists had objected to the proposal and cited an official inspection report which stated that the expansion began before the mandatory clearances were given. Ramesh Agrawal also successfully petitioned India’s Ministry of Environment and Forests to temporarily suspend the terms of reference for the expansion. Following a complaint relating to the delay, the state authorities decided to arrest the two activists.

Ramesh Agrawal works for the environmental rights organization Jan Chetna, and Dr Harihar Patel practices indigenous medicine. They had been actively campaigning against the pollution caused by existing industrial projects, including coal plants, and the potential negative environmental impact of proposed industrial projects in central Chhattisgarh. The two activists have been at the forefront of the campaign for the public disclosure of information relating to projects which affect local Adivasi (Indigenous) communities and for ensuring that these are available to the communities. Their arrest, Amnesty International believes, is intended to stop their peaceful campaign activities.

The two activists were sent to Raigarh prison until June 3, 2011, and a local court rejected their appeals for release on bail on June 2. Ramesh Agrawal, who complained of hypertension, was taken for treatment at a government-run hospital where he is being kept chained to his bed.

Project Details for 2400 MW expansion
Sponsor: Jindal Power Location: Tamnar, Raigarh, Chhattisgarh Coordinates: Units 1-4: 22.1050445, 83.4513116; proposed Units 5-8: 22.0987473, 83.446725 Status: Units 1-4: Operating; Units 5-8: Construction Nameplate capacity: 2,400 MW Type: Subcritical Projected in service: Unit 5: December 2014; Unit 6: April 2014; Unit 7: March 2015; Unit 8: September 2015 Coal Type: Coal Source: Estimated annual CO2: Source of financing: MoEF permits: Environmental clearance, (Mar 18, 2011)

Mega-power project bid
In its 2009 prospectus the company states that the estimated project cost assumed that the project would be "granted mega-power‘ status from the Government of India" which would make the company "eligible to receive certain tax benefits and other benefits." The company stated that "if we do not receive mega-power‘ status for this project, the tax and duty component of the project cost for the first phase of this project is estimated to increase by Rs. 4,583.00 million" ($US 101.8 million).

Coal supply
In its December 2009 prospectus the company stated that "our Tamnar II Project under implementation in Chhattisgarh does not have a secure source of fuel. We have applied to the Ministry of Coal for a long-term coal linkage to meet the fuel requirements for this power plant and our application is pending." It also stated that it had applied to the Ministry of Coal "for a long-term coal linkage" in Raigarh, Chhattisgarh.

Jindall Power's 2011 environmental clearance permit from the Indian government applies to the proposed units 5 and 6, and states that clearance may be granted to units 7 and 8 once a coal linkage is secured.

Land acquisition
In its December 2009 prospectus the company stated it estimated that it would need to acquire approximately 1,762 acres for the project for the "power plant, ash dike, related green belt areas and housing colony, but excludes land required for setting-up coal transportation systems, railway sidings, right of use and right of way for water pipelines, transmission lines etc." As of November 2009 the company had acquired only 330.36 acres of land.

Water supply
In its 2009 prospectus the company stated that it intended "to source the requirements of water for the project from the Mahanadi river. The water arrangement involves the construction of a weir, a raw water reservoir and pump house as well as installation of raw water pipelines up to the plant."

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