Tata Power commissions first unit of 126 MW Dagachhu hydropower project in Bhutan

Tata Power Company (TPC) has successfully commissioned the 63 MW first unit of its 126 MW Dagachhu Hydro Power Corporation (DHPC) in Bhutan, to take its overall power production capacity to 8,684 MW.

This project is in line with Tata Power's commitment to commission 120 MW of new hydro power generating capacity this year, and is the first cross border project registered under UNFCCC's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), the company said in a release.

The Dagachhu project is a joint venture between Tata Power and Druk Green Power Corporation of the Royal Government of Bhutan (RGoB), and National Pension and Provident Fund of Bhutan.

With the commissioning of the project, Tata Power's total hydro generation capacity today stands at 513 MW and overall capacity at 8,684 MW.

The Dagachhu Project is 126 MW (2X63 MW) run of river hydro project located in Dagana Dzongkhag, Bhutan.

Commercial flow of energy generated from the Dagachhu project to India officially started at 00:30 hours in the morning (Bhutan time) on 21 February 2015. The test run for the second unit of 63 MW will also be immediately started and is expected to be completed soon, Tata Power said.

DHPC has entered into a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Tata Power Trading Company Limited (TPTCL) for power generated from the project. The power generated from the project will be sold by TPTCL in the Indian power market.

Speaking on the occasion, Anil Sardana, CEO and managing director of Tata Power, said, "We are delighted to announce the commissioning of the Dagachhu hydro project in Bhutan. Hydro power is an intrinsic part of our clean energy mix and we aim to develop new hydro project of yet another 450 MW this year. We are committed to reducing our carbon footprint through the generation of 20-25 per cent of our total capacity through clean and renewable energy sources.''

Chhewang Rinzin, chairman of DHPC, and managing director of DGPC, said, "The 126 MW Dagachhu project is the first hydroelectric project that has been successfully completed under a Bhutanese management.

This is the first public private partnership project that showcased the very successful participation of Tata Power Company in Bhutan's hydropower sector with Tata Power Trading Company offtaking the energy to India.

''The Dagachhu project is also the first cross-border CDM project that has led to other projects being cleared under the Clean Development Mechanism. The main promoter, ADB, has been very happy with the implementation of the Dagachhu project, and has agreed to finance the 118 MW Nikachhu project and also expand on ADB's involvement in Bhutan's hydropower sector.

''For Bhutan, the successful completion of the Dagachhu project has given confidence of its own internal capabilities in developing such projects and plans to continue to build its human capital through implementation of similar and larger projects. For the management team, it has been a huge relief to have finally commissioned the first unit. Druk Green hopes to achieve similar successes with its future projects and would like to thank the Tata Power and Tata Power Trading for helping Dagachhu project to achieve its commissioning.''

While Tata Power has been India's largest integrated power company with a growing international presence, Adani Power, overtook Tata Power as the largest power producer a year ago with 11,040 MW of capacity.

Adani Power has also recently acquired Avantha Power's 600 MW Korba West Power Project in Chattisgarh.