A day after the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group declared it will be interested in buying out the Dabhol project whenever it is up for sale, Petroleum Minister Murli Deora categorically denied the Central government was considering any such proposal.
Speaking to Business Standard on the sidelines of his meeting with Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh on the issue of purchase of ethanol by public sector petroleum companies, Deora said, "No such proposal has been mooted either by GAIL or any of the promoters of 2120 Mw project."
And, if any such proposal is mooted, it will have much wider ramifications than we can think of, he added.
There are three promoters of the Dabhol plant or Ratnagiri Gas and Power Private Ltd (RGPPL) which include GAIL and NTPC, who own 28.33 per cent, and theMaharashtra government, which owns 15 per cent, while the rest of the stake is held by financial institutes which include the IDBI, SBI, ICICI and Canara Bank.
It may be recalled that on Sunday, while addressing a press conference in the capital, Anil Ambani said, "We may consider investing in the Dabhol integrated power project when government allows private sector participation after things stabilise for the project."
It is believed, the Dabhol power project, which is an integrated with the LNG terminal, has aroused interest of the ADAG group in the project.
Dabhol which has LNG terminal with capacity to handle 1.2 million tons per annum (mtpa) is likely to scaled up to 5 mtpa by the end of 2010.
Currently there are only two LNG terminals and regasification plants in the country where LNG can be brought directly in liquid state by a ship and stored before regassified for the use. And both of them are located in Gujrat and owned by Petronet LNG and Shell India.
Earlier, empowered group of ministers (EGOM) led by Pranab Mukharjee on Dabhol power project had contemplated the idea of hiving off LNG terminal in to separate entity as cost of restoring and completing the LNG terminal was pegged at Rs 4,000 crore (Rs 40 billion).
However after GAIL and NTPC agreed to infuse equity of Rs 475 crore (Rs 4.75 billion) each and Maharashtra government Rs 250 crore (Rs 2.50 billion), idea was dropped.
