NTPC's First Hydropower Project Starts in Himachal

New Delhi: NTPC, India's largest power producer, on Monday forayed into hydroelectric generation by commissioning the 200 MW unit of its Koldam project in Himachal Pradesh.

"NTPC debuts in hydro generation by commissioning a 200 MW unit of Koldam hydro power project today," the company said in a regulatory filing.

The total size of the project is 800 MW. "With this, the total installed capacity of NTPC has become 44,003 MW," it added.

The construction of the Koldam project, which began in 2003, got delayed due to various environment and geological hurdles leading to a cost over-run of about 20 per cent from the approved investment of Rs 4,527 crore.

The Koldam project will supply electricity to Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Chandigarh.

NTPC is also executing three more hydroelectric projects - Tapovan Vishnugad (520 MW) and Lata Tapovan (171 MW) in Uttarakhand and Singrauli Small Hydro Project (8 MW) in Uttar Pradesh.

Shares in NTPC, on Monday, ended at Rs 147.50 apiece on the BSE, up 1.24 per cent from the previous close.