Nod for revised cost of power infra project

Bhubaneswar: The cabinet on Wednesday approved a revised cost estimate for a grid substation at Paradip (Ersama) to meet the rising power demand of upcoming industries in the Petroleum, Chemical and Petrochemicals Investment Region (PCPIR).

The government had in 2020–21 cleared OPTCL’s proposal to set up a 400/220/33 kV grid substation at Paradip (Ersama) along with associated transmission lines at a cost of Rs 637.45 crore. Of this, 30% (Rs 191.23 crore) was to be infused by the state government as equity in OPTCL, while the remaining 70% (Rs 446.21 crore) was to be mobilised through loans.

The cost has now been revised to Rs 854.24 crore due to environmental and geographical constraints as well as changes in technical specifications. Consequently, the state’s equity contribution will rise to Rs 256.27 crore.

The project is expected to augment power infrastructure for the PCPIR and strengthen the transmission network by linking the state capital region with industrial hubs such as Paradip and Kalinga Nagar (Duburi) through a 400 kV and 220 kV ring network.