Date:27/09/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/09/27/stories/2008092756650400.htm

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Rs 30,000 cr. investment in wind power promised

Special Correspondent

State government urged to extend cash incentive scheme

HYDERABAD: The wind power industry has promised an investment of Rs. 30,000 crore if the State government extended 25 per cent cash incentive in sales tax for captive generation in wind sector.

Speaking to reporters after his election as the president of the State council of Indian Wind Power Association here on Friday, noted industrialist T.G. Venkatesh appealed to the government to extend the cash incentive scheme which is currently available to all other industrial units to the wind sector also. Otherwise, there was the danger of wind energy generators shifting to other States.

He said the State had a potential to generate up to 2,110 MW from wind sector but only 103 MW was tapped due to unfavourable tariff structure. The State government had recently hiked the power purchase price from Rs. 2.70 to 3.50 a unit. But, the measure hardly promoted generation programme. He also said that with investment being the same, the generation was only two lakh units in Andhra Pradesh as against three lakh units in Tamil Nadu for an installed capacity of one MW. The loss from a MW amounted to Rs. 40 lakh. It would have been higher at the old rate of Rs. 2.70 a unit.

Mr. Venkatesh added that the wind power sector in the State failed to invite fresh investment for the last four years because of the purchase price which was the lowest in the country.