Tilaiya Ultra Mega Power Project

Tilaiya Ultra Mega Power Project is a proposed coal-fired power plant in Jharkhand, India.

Location
The project is proposed for Koderma district in Jharkhand state. The company as not disclosed the exact location but residents of Bhadiya, Bhadiyajohar and Beherabad report that the company has acquired land (see details below). This map shows the location of Talaiya.

Background
Tilaiya Ultra Mega Power Project is one of nine Ultra Mega Power Projects proposed by the government of India as part of a strategy to add an additional 100,000 megawatts of generation capacity by 2017. The 4,000 megawatt project is in the state of Jharkhand and is being developed by Reliance Power.

Mine for Tilaiya Project approved
In November 2010, the India Coal Ministry approved a mining plan submitted by RPower, granting initial clearance for mining coal from Kerandari B and C coal blocks in Orissa to feed the company's proposed Rs.20,000 Tilaiya Ultra Mega Power Project (UMPP). The coal mines can support 10,000 MW of power generation. It is estimated to be the largest coal block in India and among the top three in the world, with reserves in excess of 1.2 billion tons. RPower is understood to have obtained the initial environment clearance as well, and has commenced land acquisition process for developing the mines, which have estimated coal reserves of 1.2 billion tons allotted for the Tilaiya UMPP. The plan envisages an annual coal production of 40 million tons for 30 years.

The Coal Ministry said that the company would utilize 16 million tons per annum of coal exclusively for the Tilaiya UMPP and the balance 24 million tons would be used or disposed off as per the conditions stipulated in the allocation letter. The mines are located around 30 kilometer from the existing line of Indian Railways, and could supply coal to other group companies. The permission has come even as the government, TATA Power, and RPower are locked in a legal battle in the Supreme Court over permission to divert coal from the Sasan Ultra Mega Power Project to another RPower project.

Carbon Credits
On July 12, 2011, it was reported that Reliance Power was seeking to earn almost Rs 2,000 crore in 10 years by registering its 4,000 MW Tilaiya Ultra Mega Power Project for carbon credits. The move was part of the company's goal to earn Rs 5,000 crore in carbon offset credits from the UN's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) with three of its Ultra Mega Power Projects of 4,000 MW. That same day, the UN announced that Reliance's Krishnapatnam Ultra Mega Power Project will receive 12.3 million credits and the firm's other 4,000 MW plant, Sasan Ultra Mega Power Project in Madhya Pradesh, will receive 22.5 million.

Questions regarding location and legitimacy
In November 2011, Down to Earth reported that the plant had been awarded carbon credits worth thousands of crores of rupees, even though the project validator acknowledged that it did not carry out physical inspection of the plant site. Down to Earth therefore did its own inspection of the proposed plant's location:

In its website, Reliance states in one location that the plant is to be set up in Hazaribagh district, Jharkhand; elsewhere on the same website, the company states that the plant is to be set up in the Koderma district of Jharkhand. The exact location of the plant is not known. Its environmental clearance says the plant is “near Tilaiya village.” The reservoir of Tilaiya dam will supply water to the thermal power plant. Yet when asked about the project site, its security personnel said they did not know about it, and maybe the plant's location is actually the adjacent Kolhuakala village. Residents of Kolhuakala, however, claimed they have never heard about the plant. After several inquiries, Mohammad Shakur from the neighbouring Bhadiyajohar village said Kolhuakala and his village are among those that Reliance would acquire for the power project. He said the plant site was in Bhadiya village, about 10 km from the Tilaiya dam. On reaching Bhadiya, residents confirmed that Reliance Power had acquired some 240 hectares from 70 farmers of the village for the plant.

According to a financial expert based in Mumbai, “It is perhaps one of the very few projects in the country that managed CDM registration even before acquiring land, let alone becoming operational.” The validation report, available on the UNFCCC website, says the project will acquire land in 10 unnamed villages, covering 1,089 hectares. Discussions with residents of Bhadiya, Bhadiyajohar and Beherabad revealed that the company planned to acquire about 1,700 hectares from 14 villages.

Some residents in Bhadiyajohar and Beherabad said that although a public hearing was conducted, it was "more of a farce: There was neither any commitment about employment nor any discussion on compensation." Residents also said they were pressured into selling their land, and there were allegations of land encroachment: Bhadiya residents in 2009 took Reliance Power-owned Jharkhand Integrated Power Limited to Hazaribagh Court for acquiring 16 hectares of village commons land without permission or compensation. The matter is currently sub-judice. The challenge is ongoing while JIPL is seeking environmental clearance for its coal mine.

Project Details
Sponsor: Reliance Power Location: Koderma district, Jharkhand Coordinates: 24.429601, 85.535958 (location of Talaiya but not the exact location of the project) Status: Proposed Nameplate capacity: 4,000 MW Type: Projected in service: 2017 Coal Type: Coal Source: Kerandari B and C coal blocks in Orissa Estimated annual CO2: Source of financing: MoEF permits: Environmental clearance, (April 7, 2008); Environmental clearance extension (Oct 4, 2013)

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 * India and coal
 * Reliance Power
 * Sasan Ultra Mega Power Project
 * Krishnapatnam Ultra Mega Power Project
 * Proposed coal plants in India