Union Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, during his visit to Washington DC, said that the long-festering Dabhol Power Project controversy is no longer an albatross that inhibits foreign direct investment in India's power sector.
Shinde, who is leading a delegation comprising senior officials from his own ministry, the Power Finance Corporation of India, representatives of private sector producers, and conducting a road-show in the US with stops in New York, Washington, Chicago and Los Angeles, told rediff India Abroad that the psychological phobia over Dabhol that led to continuing concerns by potential investors in entering into this sector, had all but dissipated "because they know that the foreign investors have already been paid by India."
"Now they have the confidence that their money will not go away," he said.
Shinde did acknowledge that the process of resolving this issue had indeed taken several years, but he asserted, "That's why we amended the law and initiated reforms to instill confidence in the investors."
He said that in all of his meetings, including at a conference organised by the US-India Business Council, he always pre-empted any expected questions on Dabhol - which during earlier visits by Indian leaders and officials have plagued their efforts to solicit US investment in the power sector - by speaking about it himself.
During a speech to, and followed up by a meeting with members of the USIBC, Shinde explained that his ministry 'has also been successful in reviving the Dabhol Power Project, which was shut down from June 2001 following disputes between Dabhol Power Company and Maharashtra State Electricity Board.'
He noted that 'a joint venture company by the name of Ratnagiri Gas and Power Private Ltd with the shareholding of National Thermal Power Corporation, Gas Authority of India Ltd, Indian financial institutions and the state has been constituted to restart the power plant and complete the construction of Phase-II and the associated LNG terminal.'
He predicted that the project will begin the generation of power by the middle of this year.
Shinde, who also met US Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman on April 26, told rediff India Abroad, that they had discussed various issues of Indo-US cooperation in the Energy Dialogue between the two countries, and that Bodman had been particularly thankful over India's decision to participate in the FutureGen project to develop zero emission coal-based power plants.
"I discussed with him this project and he was very happy that we have done it. So not only did we have discussions on this FutureGen project but we have also entered into an agreement to combat carbon emissions," he said.
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