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Ogden Asia may not expand

Our Bureau

KOLKATA, Aug. 15

UNNERVED by the current developments with regard to the Dabhol power project in Maharashtra, the management of Ogden Asia Pacific Ltd (OAPL) of Hong Kong is understood to have decided not to take any active interest in developing any further business int erests in India.

However, the company may not snap ties with partners with whom it has already signed agreements.

OAPL, a wholly-owned subsidiary of a medium-sized US power company, began its operations about three years its target being to develop business in the power sector. The company set up its ``country specific'' office in the city after obtaining permission from the Reserve Bank, which allowed it to bring in foreign exchange from Hong Kong for meeting expenses in India. To start with, permission was given for a period of three years.

As part of its business strategy, the company decided to take over old and financial sick power plants on a lease basis on an understanding that the plants would be handed over to their owners after having run profitably for a specific period of time.

An MoU was signed with the Assam State Electricity Board for taking over the 240-MW (60 MW x 4) Bongaigaon thermal power project. But the move did not click ultimately because the price sought by OAPL at the time of signing the power purchase agreement w as not acceptable to the ASEB.

OAPL also signed an MoU with the city-based Development Consultant Ltd (DCL) for taking over an incomplete unit of the Bakreswar super-thermal power station from the West Bengal State Electricity Board. The IDBI was approached for a non-guaranteed loan f or the project but the funds were not sanctioned on technical grounds.

Close on the heels of these ``negative'' developments came the change in the ownership of OAPL's parent company, which led to a change in management. The new CEO is believed to have found no justification for continuing to spend money on developing busin ess prospects in India. Hence the decision to wind up its ``country specific'' office here.

Even so, it is learnt that OAPL may still be associated with Batliboy and Company for setting up a 20-MW power project at Samalpatti in Andhra Pradesh.