‘R-Power will get 29,000cr from coal diversion’

New Delhi: The government's decision to allow Reliance Power Ltd to divert surplus coal from captive mines of its Sasan power project to another group plant will extend a windfall gain of Rs 29,000 crore over 20 years to the Anil Ambani group firm, the government auditor has said.      The CAG report on 'Ultra Mega Power Projects Under Special Purpose Vehicles', tabled in Parliament on Friday, has held the UPA-ruled Centre and the BJP-led Madhya Pradesh government equally responsible for extending this largesse. "The permission to use surplus coal in other projects of the bidder after the award of the contract, based on acceptance of the lowest tariff, vitiated the sanctity of the bidding process which would result in post-bid concessions to the developer having significant financial implication," the report said.      It also asked why a third mine was allocated to the Sasan project by taking it away from NTPC when it was not proved that two earmarked mines would be insufficient to generate 3,960 mw power. '3rd mine given on basis of insufficient data'  New Delhi: Reliance Power Ltd's Sasan plant, which has come under the CAG's scanner, is one of the Centre's showcase ultra-mega power projects to be auctioned. Reliance won the project quoting a power tariff of Rs 1.19 per unit in 2006. The company bid a power tariff of Rs 2.45-3.70 per unit for the Chitrangi project.      The project was first allotted the Moher and Moher-Amlohri Extension mines. In 2006, the project was allotted the Chhatrasal block, the third captive mine, following the power ministry's recommendation that the project required an additional coal block to meet its fuel needs.      The CAG report said the third mine was allocated on the basis of insufficient data since mining plans for Moher and Moher-Amlohri Extension were not available. Reliance Power later informed the government in 2008 that the latest technology being deployed by the company would allow it to mine surplus coal. But as the CAG report noted, even before Reliance informed of the potential for surplus production, the Madhya Pradesh CM had requested the PM in November 2007 to allow the use of excess coal from Sasan mines for another project the company was setting up in Chitrangi tehsil. A ministerial panel in 2008 allowed Reliance to use surplus coal for its other projects where power was sold through tariff-based bidding.