RIL is also fighting a case with Reliance Natural Resources Ltd in the Supreme Court on supply of 28 mmsmcd at the NTPC price to the Anil Ambani-owned company. Though Subramanium has said this case has no bearing on NTPC, the ministry of petroleum and natural gas' plea in the Supreme Court may have implications on price and utilisation of gas sales from RIL's D6 block in the Krishna-Godavari basin.
The country's largest power producer, NTPC, which will add another 20,000 MWs by 2017 and induct large sized units of 1000 MWs during the 12th Plan, has its initial public offering oversubscribed by 13.4 times in the stock exchange.
Public sector major NTPC's follow-on public offer (FPO) managed to scrape through today, but raised questions about the state of the primary markets and the government's disinvestment programme.
As India's electricity demand soars, the power ministry on Tuesday reviewed the power supply situation to ensure 'zero load shedding' during the summer months. The ministry has drafted plans ranging from delaying planned maintenance of thermal power stations to mandatory operations of imported coal-based and gas-based stations till September. In a series of meetings with industry stakeholders, Union Minister for Power, New, and Renewable Energy R K Singh emphasised the importance of adequate planning to avoid situations where one state has surplus power while another state faces shortages.
Of the 17.99 mmcmd gas allocated to the power sector, gas supply pacts of only 2.67 mmcmd allocated to NTPC remained to be signed. NTPC's opposition has also delayed the GSPA for a separate 2.7 mmcmd allocated to the Dabhol power plant and the same is now slated to be signed next week.
The government holds 89.5 per cent stake in NTPC and it plans to dilute five per cent stake constituting 41.22 crore (412.2 million) shares through its proposed FPO.
RIL has complained the to power ministry about NTPC's reluctance to sign an agreement to buy gas from it and said that the power PSU stands to lose Rs 15,000 crore (Rs 150 billion)on buying imported LNG.
The letter comes days after the government made it clear that the empowered Group of Ministers approved price of $4.2 per mmBtu for RIL's KG basin gas.
In the face of oil minister's comment that Reliance Industries Ltd gas to NTPC could be given at a government-approved price, the state-owned power major on Saturday said it will continue to fight legally for the fuel's contracted price and seek power ministry's help.
State-run power firm NTPC overstated its profits by Rs 938 crore (R 9.38 billion) in 2007-08, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India said in a report, but categorically stated that chances of Satyam like frauds in PSUs are very remote.
State-run NTPC has agreed to buy natural gas from Reliance Industries but is opposed to paying marketing margin to the private firm and wants to use the fuel at plants other than Kawas and Gandhar that were identified by the government.
Among the Sensex firms, Tata Steel, Tata Motors, Asian Paints, Wipro, State Bank of India and Larsen & Toubro were the major gainers. ICICI Bank, NTPC, Axis Bank and Mahindra & Mahindra were among the laggards.
Around 90-100 people received burn injuries, and the condition of some of them was serious.
In a bid to diversify its product portfolio, National Thermal Power Corporation plans to enter into new areas like power distribution and electricity supply besides consolidating its presence in hydel power sector.
Adani Power, part of the Adani group, plans to add close to 6 gigawatts (Gw) of new power assets in the next five years, according to an investor presentation by the company. That is clearly meant to ride on India's burgeoning power demand. But there is another side to it: All of this new capacity is expected to be thermal power, or power produced from coal.
The Union Cabinet has cleared an initial public offer of 10 per cent of its equity in National Thermal Power Corporation to raise Rs 3,000 crore (Rs 30 billion), power secretary R V Shahi said on Thursday.
NTPC raises new demands, while CIL is not willing to yield
Four major banks including State Bank of India and ICICI Bank have been appointed as the preferred banks for extending loans to employees of NTPC for investing in the power major's maiden public offer.
With the government making a distinction between the privately-run Reliance Natural Resources Ltd and the government-run NTPC Ltd in relation with the gas dispute with Reliance Industries Ltd, the ministry of power is likely to take up NTPC's case with the Empowered Group of Ministers.
Reliance Industries was the biggest gainer in the Sensex pack, rising 2.69 per cent, followed by HCL Tech, ICICI Bank, Tata Motors, Wipro, IndusInd Bank, JSW Steel, Wipro, Tata Consultancy Services and Titan. In contrast, NTPC, Power Grid, UltraTech Cement, Axis Bank, Infosys and Nestle were the major laggards.
'The Nifty index looks to be 20 per cent overvalued as per our model after moving up more than 10 per cent in the last two months.'
NTPC, which currently generates over 43,000 MW, aims to add 14,000 MW capacity by 2017.
Among the Sensex firms, NTPC, Power Grid, Mahindra & Mahindra, Larsen & Toubro, Sun Pharma, State Bank of India, Titan and Tata Steel were the major gainers. Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, UltraTech Cement and Bajaj Finance were the major laggards.
In a development that could deliver a setback to Reliance Industries, the Bombay high court on Monday allowed power PSU NTPC to amend its petition, seeking implementation of a gas supply agreement.
The crisis-riden CWG has received a further jolt with two power PSUs, NTPC and PowerGrid, deciding to hold back their Rs 40 crore sponsorship money out of a combined committed sum of Rs 60 crore for the event.
"All requirements including providing bank guarantee have been met by NTPC and gas flow can start as early as tomorrow," an official said.
Another FPO, that of NMDC, is also likely to be held by end-this fiscal, the official said.
India's largest power generation company National Thermal Power Corporation on Tuesday embarked upon a major overseas fund raising exercise and decided to establish medium term note programme of $1 billion.
Anil Ambani Group firm RNRL on Tuesday welcomed the government's move to protect NTPC's interest on sourcing gas from Reliance Industries, saying effective legal steps will defeat the Mukesh Ambani firm's 'malafide attempts to dishonour' its commitment.
The issue received bids for over 25 crore (250 million) shares against 41.22 crore (412.2 million) equities on offer, according to the data available with the National Stock Exchange.
A Division Bench led by Chief Justice Swatenter Kumar on Thursday dismissed NTPC's appeal. The suit between the two parties relates to their gas supply agreement.
Reliance Industries has cautioned that NTPC should not make comments on matters sub-judice lest they are construed as attempt to influence the outcome of its court case seeking natural gas at price committed in 2004.
Collectively, these companies spent Rs 628 crore (Rs 6.28 billion) on political contributions in the past five years, according to their annual reports.
The CBI is investigating into the alleged irregularities in NTPC awarding a contract to Russian power equipment supplier Technopromexport (TPE) to supply equipments for its Rs 8,600 crore (Rs 86 billion) 1,980-mw Barh (Bihar) Super Thermal Power Project in 2005.
According to sources close to the development, NTPC is likely to hit the capital market with a follow-on public offer to raise nearly Rs 6,000 crore (Rs 60 billion) early next fiscal. The government would divest 10 per cent of its stake and 10 per cent would be the fresh equity offered by NTPC.
Investors' wealth grew by Rs 3.24 lakh crore on Thursday as the BSE Sensex jumped nearly 1 per cent after a two-day slide. The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 490.97 points or 0.69 per cent to settle at 71,847.57. During the day, it rallied 598.19 points or 0.83 per cent to 71,954.79.
There can be no forgetting the Margaret Thatcher principle of leaving something on the table for the small investor.
Decks have been cleared for National Thermal Power Corp's foray in oil exploration sector with the government awarding one block to the power major under the fifth round of New Exploration Licensing Policy.
As temperatures soar across the country, amid searing heat wave, analysts see power demand hitting fresh record highs this year. The time, therefore, may be opportune to add related stocks on dips as higher demand boosts earnings visibility, they said. On April 18, India's electricity demand touched a new high of 216 gigawatts.
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