Trombay Power Station
{{#Badges:CoalSwarm|navbar-Indiacoal}} Trombay Power Station is a 1580 megawatt (MW) thermal plant in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. Unit 5 (500 MW) and Unit 8 (250 MW) are run on coal, Unit 6 on oil, and Unit 7 on gas. Tata has proposed converting the 500 MW Unit 6 from fuel oil to imported coal, and submitted a draft environmental impact assessment report for the proposal in October 2012. (For more detail on the proposed upgrade see Trombay Power Station Proposed Conversion of Unit 6 to coal-fired).
Contents
Location
Background
Trombay Power Station was established in 1956 to provide power to the city of Mumbai. Unit 6 was operational in 1990 and runs on fuel oil. Tata Power has said the rising cost of fuel oil has led the company to propose conversion to imported coal.[1]
Coal imports
Approximately 2.4 million tonnes of coal for the existing coal-fired units is imported by a project specific coal berth. Tata Power has proposed that the capacity of the Trombay Coal Terminal be expanded to 4.4 million tonnes a year and an additional coal storage area be built.[2]
Coal for the power station is supplied from Indonesia. In March 2007 Tata Power purchased a 30% stake in two coal mines owned by Bumi Resources --PT Kaltim Prima Coal (KPC) and PT Arutmin Indonesia (Arutmin). Announcing the deal, Bumi stated that Tata Power had entered into a "long term" coal off-take agreement with KPC "for the supply of approximately 10 million tonnes per annum at index linked prices for its power plant at Trombay in India as well as for future power projects, including the recently won Ultra Mega Power Project of 4,000MW at Mundra in India."[3]
Unit 6 conversion from oil and gas to coal
Tata Power proposes to convert the existing oil and gas-fired boiler to a sub-critical coal fired boiler burning "imported low sulphur, low ash coal". The company states that the cost of the project would be 1174 Crores (approx US$214 million as of January 2013).[4]
In the Executive Summary of the EIS, Tata Power argues that in 2011-12 year there was a shortfall of 1123 MW in capacity and states that Unit 6 is currently only being operated at 50% of capacity. The company states that:
- "With the increase in the cost of LSHS/LSFO of desired low sulphur, the Unit #6 generation is becoming unaffordable to the consumers. Hence, Tata Power has proposed modernization of existing Unit #6 by change of fuel to use low sulphur imported coal instead of LSHS/LSFO. Unit #6 (500 MW) is operational since 1990. It is currently being operated on LSHS/LSFO and gas as and when available. LSHS/LSFO of desired low sulphur is not available locally in adequate quantity to meet the environment norms. It has to be imported at very high cost resulting in uneconomical generation cost of power from Unit #6."
- "Natural gas is not available in sufficient quantity and is unlikely to be available in near future also. With the widening gap between demand and supply of power, it is necessary that existing Unit #6 should be operated at full capacity with the only alternative fuel available which is low sulphur imported coal. Thus proposed modernization of Unit # 6 with coal firing is essential to meet the demand of power at reasonable cost to consumers."[5]
The company states that coal consumption if the unit was converted would be approximately 2 million tonnes per annum.[6]
In mid-December Tata Power stated in a media release, issued by the PR firm Edelman, stated that it "sees vested interests spreading misinformation & impeding progress" but did not state exactly what it saw the "misinformation" as being.[7]
Project Details for Unit 6 conversion
Sponsor: Tata Power
Location: Trombay suburb, Mumbai city, Maharashtra state, India
Coordinates: 19.0027, 72.8979 (exact)
Status: Pre-permit development
Nameplate capacity:[8]
- Unit 4: 150 MW - (Presently Stand by)
- Unit 5: 500 MW - (Coal)
- Unit 6: 500 MW - (Oil) - seeking conversion to coal
- Unit 7: 180 MW - Gas Combined Cycle Power Plant (CCPP)
- Unit 8: 250 MW - (Coal)
Type: Subcritical
Projected in service:
Coal Source: Imported coal
Estimated annual CO2:
Source of financing:
Resources and articles
Related SourceWatch articles
References
- ↑ Tata Power, "The Proposed Modernisation of Existing Unit # 6 (500 MW) by change of fuel at Trombay Thermal Power Station", Draft Environment Impact Assessment Report, October 2012.
- ↑ Tata Power, "The Proposed Modernisation of Existing Unit # 6 (500 MW) by change of fuel at Trombay Thermal Power Station", Draft Environment Impact Assessment Report, October 2012, page 4.
- ↑ Bumi Resources, "Bumi Announces Sale of 30% stake in its coal companies to Tata Power", Media Release, March 30, 2007.
- ↑ Tata Power, "The Proposed Modernisation of Existing Unit # 6 (500 MW) by change of fuel at Trombay Thermal Power Station", Draft Environment Impact Assessment Report: Executive Summary, October 2012, page 2.
- ↑ Tata Power, "The Proposed Modernisation of Existing Unit # 6 (500 MW) by change of fuel at Trombay Thermal Power Station", Draft Environment Impact Assessment Report: Executive Summary, October 2012, pages 3-4.
- ↑ Tata Power, "The Proposed Modernisation of Existing Unit # 6 (500 MW) by change of fuel at Trombay Thermal Power Station", Draft Environment Impact Assessment Report: Executive Summary, October 2012, page 4.
- ↑ Tata Power, "Tata Power Proposes Cost Reduction for Its Mumbai Customers Through Modernization Of 500 Mw Unit # 6 at Trombay Thermal Power Station", Media Release, December 17, 2012.
- ↑ "Final Environmental Impact Assessment Report for the Proposed Modernisation of Existing Unit #6 (500 MW) by change of fuel at Trombay Thermal Power Station," Tata Power, April 2013
