DPC phase II to be completed soon

US energy major Enron Corp's original contractors for the $2.96-billion Dabhol power project will complete the unfinished LNG terminal to restart the stalled 2,184 MW plant by next year.

State-owned gas utility GAIL (India) Ltd, which has been mandated by the government to source liquefied natural gas and manage the LNG import and regassification terminal, has managed to reconstitute the original engineering, procurement and construction consortia for completing the LNG terminal.

National Thermal Power Corp, which is to run the power plant, is roping in General Electrics for completion of the 1,444 MW Phase-II of the project, a GAIL press release said.

The construction of the LNG terminal and the almost ready 1,444 MW Phase-II were abandoned in June 2001, when the Dabhol project ran into contractual problems.

Originally, Enron-affiliate Lingtec was awarded the main EPC contract for construction of the 2.5 million tones LNG terminal along with marine facilities.

Lingtec in turn awarded two EPC sub-contracts - regasification plant, tankage and utilities construction contract to UK's Kvaerner and Whessoe and Punj Lloyd; and marine facilities comprising of the jetty, approach channel and breakwater to Besix of Bengim and Kier of the UK.

"The consortia would undertake completion of the balance work under the active supervision of two project management consultants being engaged in this regard," the GAIL release said.

Punj Lloyd has been maintaining the project since April 2002.

GAIL said the absence of engineering database of the project and issues related to the ownership of the intellectual property rights of the technical documentation of the project were major bottlenecks in the restart of the construction activities.

"With the reconstitution of the consortia, these problems have been solved to a large extent," it said.

"The terminal contractors are generally satisfied with the state of preservation of the facilities and the completion of balance work is targeted for July 2006," the release added.