Centre not to take over Dabhol power project

MUMBAI, AUG. 17. The Centre today made it clear that it will not take over Enron- promoted Dabhol Power Company's (DPC) power project, nor will the National Thermal Power Corporation buy power from the multinational. ``We are neither going to buy the plant, nor its power,'' the Union Power Secretary, Mr. A.K. Basu, told reporters after his keynote address at the inauguration of an international conference in `Global participation in Indian national grid, energy management and convergence' here. ``The Centre has made it clear that this is a dispute between the DPC and the Maharashtra Government and a solution has to be found by them. We are willing to provide any help,'' he added.

Another Power Ministry official confirmed that the conciliation procedure between the U.S. energy major and the Centre will commence tomorrow. ``The conciliation is for three days and restricted only to the non-payment of the December bill,'' he said. The Attorney-General, Mr. Soli Sorabjee, and the former Supreme Court judge, Mr. Jeevan Reddy, will represent the Centre, the official said, adding the Government will accept the verdict.

Report soon

The Godbole Committee, set up to renegotiate the power purchase agreement between the MSEB and the Dabhol Power Company (DPC), will finalise and submit its report to Maharashtra Government in the next two to three weeks. ``We are currently discussing the parameters of the report and it will take another two to three weeks to finalise it before submitting to the State Government,'' the committee chairman, Mr. Madhav Godbole, told reporters today.

- PTI

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