SRINAGAR: In a major development, the Chenab Valley Power Projects Ltd (CVPP) crossed a milestone by starting the diversion of the Chanab River. This will pave the way for the working of the dam of the 540-MW Kwar Project.
CVPP is a joint venture company between NHPC and the JKSPDC, a 100 per cent fully owned company of the Jammu and Kashmir Power department. The JKSPDC has only 49 per cent shares in the CVPP after the NHPC purchased the two per cent shares of the company from the Power Trading Corporation. It is implementing three major Chenab basin projects including Kwar.
CMD @nhpcltd virtually witnessed diversion of Chenab River for starting Dam works & speedy construction of 540 MW Kwar HEP (J&K) of @CvpppLimited (JV of NHPC & JKSPDC) on 15.1.24. Dir (Fin), Dir (Pers), Dir (Tech & Proj), MD (JKSPDC) & MD (CVPPPL) were also present.#hydropower pic.twitter.com/1GJYiXqRoN
— NHPC Limited (@nhpcltd) January 15, 2024
The Rs 4500 crore Kwar project is being implemented in Padyarna village, almost 28 km from Kishtwar. It envisages the construction of a 109 m high dam, an underground powerhouse with 4 units of 135 MW each.
Diversion of the Chenab discharge marks the completion of a 685-meter-long diversion tunnel that can manage 1041 cumecs of water. With the river diverted, now the work will start on the main dam structure of the project. The project has so far booked almost Rs 500 crore expenditure. Patel Engineering has bagged the main civil work package of the hydroelectric project worth Rs 2,461 crore in May 2022.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, approved an investment of Rs 4526.12 crore for 540 Megawatt (MW) Kwar Hydro Electric Project located on river Chenab, in Kishtwar district on April 27, 2022. Once ready the project shall generate 1975.54 million units in a 90 per cent dependable year.
The government of India extended a grant of Rs 69.80 crore towards the cost of Enabling Infrastructure and also supported Jammu and Kashmir by providing a grant of Rs 655.08 crore for the Equity contribution of JKSPDC (49 per cent) in CVPPPL. NHPC invested its equity (51 per cent) of Rs 681.82 crore from its internal resources. The Kwar Hydro Electric Project shall be commissioned within 54 months.
To make the project viable, Jammu and Kashmir, according to a Press Information Bureau (PIB) press release, extended exemption from levy of Water Usage Charges for 10 years after the commissioning of the project, reimbursement of State’s share of GST (i.e. SGST) and waiver of free power at the rate of two per cent per year in a decremental manner, i.e. the free power to the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir would be 2% in the 1st year after commissioning of Project and thereafter shall increase @2% per year and shall be 12% from 6th year onwards.
