Dehradun, March 31: With a vision to provide electricity to the state by putting least burden on the environment, Uttarakhand laid the foundation stone of Naitwar Mori Hydro Electric Project (NMHEP). The Project will add 265.5 Million Units of renewable energy to the grid and would result in CO2 emissions reductions to the tune of 0.21 Million tons annually.
R K Singh, MoS for Power and New & Renewable Energy laid the foundation stone of the 60 MW Naitwar Mori Hydro Electric Project (NMHEP) along with Uttarakhand CM Trivendra Singh Rawat in Uttarkashi on Friday.
Speaking on the occasion RK Singh emphasized the role of electricity in socio-economic development and reiterated the Government’s commitment to bring power to every household- especially the most deprived and marginalized ones. Calling hydro-power a clean and green source of energy, the Minister stated that development and environment can go hand in hand. "As Indians, we are equally, if not more, concerned about our own environment and we are duty-bound to leave a better world for future generations," he said. He congratulated the people of Uttarakhand for Naitwar Mori Hydro Electric Project.
The Proposed Naitwar Mori Hydro Electric Project (NMHEP) is located on the river Tons – a tributary of the Yamuna, in Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand. This run-of-the-river project was allocated to SJVN Ltd by the Government of Uttarakhand. SJVN Ltd is a Mini Ratna PSU under the administrative control of the Ministry of Power.
With environment clearance accorded in 2016, all statutory clearances for the project are in place. Major civil works were awarded in December 2017 and the project is scheduled to be completed by December 2021, in a period of 4 years. It will have two underground generating units of 30 MW each. The estimated project cost at October 2016 PL is Rs. 648.33 crore with a debt-equity ratio of 70:30. Levelised tariff is Rs. 6.39 per unit.
Besides socio-economic development and employment generation, the project would provide 12 percent free power to Government of Uttarakhand and 1 percent additional for Local Area Development Fund (LADF).
All precautions have been taken to minimize the environmental impact of the project. Compensatory forestation will be done on double the forest land acquired for the project.