Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL) has estimated that it currently has works on hand worth Rs.51,000 crore, which will be the backbone of its capital expenditure plan for the coming years.
According to an investor presentation of PGCIL relating to the company’s performance in the first quarter (April to June) of FY21, PGCIL had ongoing projects worth Rs.33,000 crore and new projects worth Rs.6,000 crore. New projects are those that will be or have been taken up for implementation for the first time, in FY21. Projects under the tariff-based competitive bidding route (TBCB) accounted for another Rs.12,000 crore. All this adds to Rs.51,000 crore, encompassing PGCIL’s capital expenditure for FY21 and beyond.
| PGCIL: Projects in Hand | ||
| (As of June 30, 2020) | ||
| Rs.crore | % share | |
| Ongoing projects | 33,000 | 64.7 |
| New projects | 6,000 | 11.8 |
| TBCB projects | 12,000 | 23.5 |
| Total | 51,000 | 100.0 |
PGCIL has also assessed the worth of “immediate upcoming opportunities” at Rs.23,400 crore. This represents projects where the company has submitted its bids. This mainly includes transmission works relating to RE projects, worth Rs.16,000 crore. The balance Rs.7,400 crore will come from intra-state works for TBCB projects in Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh.
In terms of assets, PGCIL, as of June 30, 2020, had 163,695 ckm of transmission lines and 248 substations with a total transformation capacity of 413,950 MVA. As far as TBCB projects go, eight were commissioned (operational) and another 11 were under implementation, as of June 30, 2020.
During the first quarter of FY21, PGCIL undertook capital expenditure (capex) of Rs.1,906 crore. During the same period, the quantum of capitalization stood at Rs.1,184 crore. Capitalization refers to projects that are commissioned and therefore added to the asset block.
Capex revival in July
It is interesting to note that there was a revival in capex during July 2020, following relaxations in the lockdown. (April and May 2020 were most severe in terms of the lockdown period.) Capex up to end-July 2020, which is from April 1 to July 31, was noticeably higher at Rs.2,750 crore. Likewise, capitalization during this same period was Rs.2,000 crore.
Assets commissioned
Major transmission elements commissioned during Q1 of FY21 included the 400kV D/C Hiriyur-Mysore line and ICTs at Meerut, Koteshwar and Balipara substations.
It may be mentioned that the long-pending 400kV D/C Rajarhat-Gokarna transmission line was also commissioned in July 2020, which also explains the surge in capitalization discussed above.
