CIL workers call off proposed strike after higher bonus

Tuesday, 18 Oct 2011

ET reported that employees unions of Coal India Ltd today withdrew their proposed 3 day strike after the management agreed to give higher bonus, along with INR 1,000 as Diwali gift.

CIL has reached an agreement with workers Unions to pay INR 20,000 bonus to each worker instead of earlier announced INR 17,000, besides INR 1,000 as Diwali gift.

The unions were demanding for a minimum bonus of INR 23,500 per employee.

The unions have decided not to proceed on 72 hour strike as announced earlier. The five workers' unions INTUC, the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), the Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS) and the Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) had threatened to proceed on strike if their demands of bonus and pay revision are not met.

(sourced from ET)

BHEL wins thermal power plant contract from SCCL

Tue,Oct18, 2011

Singareni Collieries Company Limited has placed a major order on Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited for supply and installation of the main plant package for a power project in Andhra Pradesh, involving two thermal power generating units of 600 MW each.

Valued at INR 40,710 million, the contract envisages setting up a 2x600 MW thermal power generating unit for SCCL’s upcoming coal based super thermal power project, located at Adilabad in Andhra Pradesh.

BHEL's scope of work in the contract envisages design, engineering, manufacture, supply, erection, testing and commissioning of Steam Turbines, Generators and Boilers, along with state of the art Controls and Instrumentation and auxiliaries including associated civil work.

Significantly, only two orders for coal based Boiler Turbine Generator packages, namely 2x660 MW - DB Power and 2x600 MW - SCCL, have been finalized in the country in the current financial year, since April, 2011 and both have been secured by BHEL.
BHEL has fully established state of the art technology for the manufacture of thermal sets up to 1,000 MW rating. To meet customer demand, the company has introduced new rating thermal sets of 270 MW, 525 MW and 600 MW, in addition to 250 MW and 500 MW thermal sets. Notably, BHEL has so far secured orders for 23 numbers of 600 MW thermal sets.

The company has also equipped itself to produce thermal sets with supercritical parameters of 660/700/800 MW unit rating suited to Indian coal and Indian conditions. Significantly, the company has established the capability to deliver 15,000 MW per annum and further augmentation to 20,000 MW per annum is underway.

Price rise in coal from Indonesia hits power companies in India

Sunday, 11 Sep 2011

The government of India has confirmed that the increase in prices of coal from Indonesia has hit power producing companies in India.

Minister of State for Power Mr KC Venugopal informed the Lok Sabha that "Some power generation companies in India are facing the problem of an increase in the price of imported coal due to new regulations in export of the commodity in Indonesia.”

Some Indian power companies or their group companies hold shares in or have acquired coal mines in Indonesia, Australia and South Africa.

New regulation issued recently by the government of Indonesia prohibits the sale of coal, including sales to affiliate companies, below a benchmark price based on international rates. The regulation requires that all existing contracts are modified from this month to comply with the new coal pricing regulation.

The target for electricity generation is fixed on a year-to-year basis, keeping in view the performance of existing units and their maintenance program, the contribution expected from new generating units programmed to be commissioned, the availability of fuel, water, etc.

Private power companies like TATA Power and Reliance Power have written to the Power Ministry in the past, requesting it to mediate with the procurers of electricity from their Mundra (Gujarat) and Krishnapatnam (Andhra Pradesh) projects, respectively, for an increase in tariffs.

The two firms had asked the Power Ministry to allow them to increase the tariffs of their projects as the imported coal sourced from Indonesia for these projects has become dearer.

(sourced from NDTV)

Ukraine plan to permit privatization of thermal power plants

Thursday, 25 Aug 2011

Ukrainian cabinet has proposed to permit the privatization of heat generation companies as a part of the realization of a concept for a national heat supply strategy in Ukraine by 2030.

The requirement is stipulated in a draft cabinet resolution on the approval of a concept for a national strategy for heat supply to Ukrainian cities and towns until 2030, which has been posted on the Web site of the Ukrainian Regional Development, Construction and Housing and Utilities Ministry.

Sources of heat generation are thermal power plants, combined heat power plants and cogeneration plants.

According to the document, the lifting of a ban on the privatization of the said companies will permit a structural reorganization and develop competition in the heat supply area. In addition, the cabinet is planning to attract private capital under leasing and concession agreements, introduce principles of competition among heat producers and suppliers and reorganize municipal unitary companies into separate companies.

The approximate cost of the project's realization is estimated at UAH 50 billion to UAH 60 billion including UAH 14.9 billion from the national budget as a part of the realization of state programs on the energy efficiency of buildings and heat supply systems. If the resolution is passed, the Regional Development, Construction and Housing and Utilities Ministry, jointly with other executive power bodies are to draw up the draft strategy by January 1 2012 and submit it to the cabinet.

(sourced from Inerfax)

US coal use off 3pct from previous week - Genscape

Aug13,2011

Genscape said that US coal consumption was off 3% in the past week, as widespread easing of summer heat and fuel-switching by power providers cut coal demand.

The power industry data monitor said that use of coal for the week ended Thursday fell 2% from the same week in 2010.

WSI Corp weather service said that "A series of cold fronts marching across the northern tier of the nation finally brought some relief from the heat across the north central and Northeasteren sectors of the nation.”

(Sourced from Reuters)

GMR Infra to buy 30 pct stake in Indonesian coal asset

Fri Aug 12, 2011 10:16am IST

MUMBAI (Reuters) - GMR Infrastructure said on Friday its unit GMR Energy Ltd has entered into a pact to acquire a 30 percent stake in Indonesia's PT Golden Energy Mines Tbk or GEMS, for $450-$550 million in cash, joining the line of Indian firms buying coal assets across the globe to seek fuel security.

Shares of GMR Infrastructure rose as much as 3.5 percent during early trades.

GEMS is a Sinar Mas Group company, GMR Infrastructure said in a statement to the stock exchange.

As part of the deal, which is expected to close in calendar year 2011, GMR Energy Ltd has entered into an off-take agreement with Golden Energy, a unit of Dian Swastatika Sentosa, to buy coal over the next 25 years starting Jan 1, 2012.

The annual off take will steadily increase to 10 million tonnes per annum over the coming years, it said.

GMR, with interests in airports, energy and highways, will fund the buy via a combination of debt and internal accruals, it said.

The buy will "significantly enhance the fuel security of the power plants under construction and development by GMR Energy Ltd. as also provide a coal portfolio for trading activity," the company said.

Indian firms have rushed to find coal mine assets in Indonesia, South Africa and Australia to fill the growing gulf between domestic coal output and demand.

In May, three sources told Reuters that Coal India, the world's largest coal miner, was in advanced talks to buy up to 40 percent stake in Golden Energy Mines for up to $1 billion.

GVK Power and Infrastructure, which has been scouting for coal mines for the past two years to fuel its power plants, was also in advanced talks to buy a coal mine owned by Australia's Hancock Prospecting.

At 10:00 a.m. (0430 GMT) shares of GMR Infrastructure were trading at 30.60 rupees, up 2.51 percent in a firm Mumbai market.

(sourced Reuters)

China firm wins Tanzania coal, iron-ore mine bid

By: Reuters, 18th January 2011
DAR ES SALAAM – China's Sichuan Hongda will invest $3-billion in a coal-fired power plant and two iron-ore mines in Tanzania, the state-run National Development Corporation (NDC) said on Tuesday.
Sichuan Hongda is in advanced talks with senior Tanzanian government officials to sign a contract for the projects after it beat bids from more than 20 international companies including Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton.
"The Chinese firm was picked from a long list of bidders as the preferred investor after winning an international bidding process. We are now negotiating final details before a contract can be signed," NDC's board chairman, Chrisant Mzindakaya, told Reuters.
China has invested billions of dollars in Africa in the production of minerals and oil, hoping to secure the resources it needs to fuel its booming economy.
Tanzania -- Africa's fourth-largest gold producer with reserves of uranium, nickel and coal -- passed a new mining law last year requiring the government to own stakes in future mining projects and mining companies to list on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange.
The investment involves construction of the Mchuchuma integrated coal mine and thermal power station and an iron ore mine in Liganga.
NDC said the projects would be implemented in a joint venture with the Chinese investors under a public-private partnership.
Financial details of the investment projects were yet to be confirmed. Senior officials from Sichuan Hongda are in Dar es Salaam for negotiations with their Tanzanian counterparts to finalise the deal.
"Our aim is to have the contract signed next month in order to pave the way for the actual implementation of the projects," Gideon Nassari, NDC managing director, told reporters.
Mchuchuma, located 800 kilometres west of Dar es Salaam, has identified reserves of 536 million tonnes of coal. The investment in the coal mine would also involve construction of a 600 megawatt coal-fired power plant.
NDC said early studies indicated that the Liganga area was rich in iron, vanadium and titanium minerals. Reserves are estimated to be between 200 and 1 200-million metric tons, with 45-million already proven through drilling.
Other bidders included Nava Bharat (Singapore), a unit of Nava Bharat Ventures Ltd, STX Corporation of South Korea, U.S. power company AES Corporation and India's Sarda Energy & Minerals Ltd.
Edited by: Reuters