Show-cause notice issued to BGRESL

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (Tangedco) has issued a show-cause notice to BGR Energy Systems Ltd (BGRESL) for the slow progress of the 660 MW Ennore Thermal Power Station (ETPS) expansion project work.

Tangedco sources said that the show-cause notice was issued to the BGR, which was awarded the contract for the balance works, asking why the contract should not be cancelled. “Based on the reply provided by the contractor a decision would be taken by the Tangedco’s board,” sources added. A year after the BGRESL took over the project site in June last year, the contractor started some preliminary civil works by utilising around 25 labours at the site, according to the Central Electricity

ity’s Broad Status Report of Under Construction Thermal Power Project.

“Tangedco is sending monthly reports regularly and as per the report M/s BGR is submitting some drawings/documents for BoP, Electrical and Control and Instrumentation (C&I) for review and approval. So far, BGR has not finalized any sub-vendor for BTG auxiliary and BoP equipment supplies and has also not started any engineering works in non-Indian origin BTG package. BGR has started some preliminary civil works by utilising around 25 labourers at the site,” the CEA report said.

The ETPS Expansion project has been facing delay after delay owing to the EPC contractors. Tangedco awarded the EPC contract to Lanco Infra Tect Ltd in May 2014. However, Lanco’s contract was terminated on April 9, 2018, after it filed for corporate insolvency and non-performance.

After the cancellation of the EPC contractor, Tangedco floated a fresh tender and awarded the balance of the works contract to BGR in March 2019. But the BGR failed to submit a performance banking guarantee on time and it led to the withdrawal of the letter of award in April 2021. However, Tangedco reinstated the BGR as the EPC contractor in November 2021 after the DMK government came to power.

The reinstatement of the contract became a political controversy with the BJP state president K Annamalai alleged corruption in it and sought its cancellation.

As of now, only 18 per cent of the work was completed including turbine generator raft concreting and chimney shell works before the termination of the contract. A trade union office bearer in Tangedco blamed the utility’s decision to award the contract to the BGR which had in the past delayed the thermal power projects for the slow progress.

“Even after a year, the work has not commenced in full scale at ETPS Expansion Project. This is the first supercritical thermal power project EPC contract awarded by Tangedco in 2014. Due to a series of bad decisions by the management, the thermal power plant commissioning has been delayed. The officials should be held responsible for the delay” the union leader said.