Nabha Power: At the Forefront of Providing Cost-effective Electricity with Ace Tech, High Efficiency & Social Benefits

NPL’s 1400 MW Rajpura TPP, is a Jewel for Punjab

Rajpura Thermal Power Plant by Nabha Power Ltd at Rajpura in Punjab

CHANDIGARH: Nabha Power Limited (NPL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Larsen & Toubro, India’s leading EPC Projects, Manufacturing, Defence and Services conglomerate, has been at the forefront of providing cost-effective power to the people of Punjab via its state-of-the-art 1400 MW supercritical thermal power plant (TPP). Comprising two units of 700 MW each at Rajpura, the plant was set up by L&T. In July 2020, it has completed six years of operations with high-efficiency, high-reliability, and social and environmental benefits.

Under a long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), all the power NPL generates is supplied to Punjab, accounting for over a quarter of the State’s power requirements. It is the cost-effective, most efficient and reliable source of power among all the TPPs in the State. Apart from providing electricity, the NPL is a source of direct and indirect employment to 3,000 people and contributes significantly to the revenue generation for the State of Punjab.

The Rajpura TPP of NPL has been delivering consistent top-notch performance and is a socially and environmentally conscientious organisation too.

Top Performance

Over the last six years, it has supplied close to 47,500 MU of power to PSPCL and 8,314 MU in FY20 – the highest of all TPPs in the State. While the thermal power plants in India operate at an average PLF (Plant Load Factor) of 55%, Nabha Power runs at a high PLF of 73% and during peak paddy season it operates at a PLF of close to 100%. High equipment reliability and best maintenance practices enable the plant to generally achieve 100% availability and with shutdown requirements for repair and maintenance activities, averages over 85% availability, year after year. This speaks volumes of the state-of-the-art Japanese supercritical technology and efficient plant operations.

NPL achieved its best-ever heat rate of 2281 kcal/KWh in FY20 and lowest auxiliary consumption of 5.06% in FY 20, best figures among the TPP’s in the State of Punjab. The CERC benchmarks for similar capacity plants are 2350 Kcal/Kwh and 5.75% for Aux consumption.

A slew of awards affirms NPL’s consistently high productivity:

• National Energy Leader Award, CII, 2019, 2020
• Excellent Energy Efficiency Unit Award, CII, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020
• Best IPP Award for 3 consecutive years by IPPAI
• Finalist in Global Platts Energy Excellence Award, S&P, USA, 2019
• High Efficiency and Sustainability Leadership, Peabody, USA, 2019
• Best Coal Based Operational Plant, Power Magazine USA, 2018
• National Energy Conservation Award, BEE, MoP – GoI, 2017

A Social Conscience

When the lockdown was imposed in Punjab in March, it was a critical period for Rajpura TPP, as Unit-1 Capital Overhaul was underway. But it was operational 24x7 during COVID-19 lockdown and generated 49 Million Units before Unit-2 was asked to go under reserve shutdown. With over 1800 personnel coming to the plant, NPL acted proactively to arrange for smooth movement of labour and ensured complete safety of staff and workers.

NPL’s CSR wing distributed over 40,000 masks to employees, contract workers, local administration and police personnel. Grocery & food items were distributed to more than 4000 BPL families in 49 villages in the vicinity of the plant. Twice a week, the labour colonies were completely sanitized by the company.

As a responsible corporate, NPL has undertaken many initiatives for the benefit of the environment. Over 20,000 trees have been planted and are nurtured on the 9 km road connecting the plant with NH7 and in nearby villages. Last year, NPL planted 50,000 plants within its premises in record time.

Forward to the Future

NPL has provision for capacity addition of third unit of 700 MW, thereby equipping Punjab to be able to draw more power from the expanded TPP in the future. NPL’s Rajpura TPP will continue to play a critical role in the supply of electricity to Punjab, and help the State reach closer to achieving its economic and social objectives.

Disclaimer: Content Produced by Larsen & Toubro