Ratle Hydroelectric Power Corporation Ltd (RHPCL) and contracting company Megha Engineering & Infrastructure Ltd (MEIL) have signed a contract agreement for turnkey execution of the Ratle hydropower project in the UT of J&K within a stipulated timeframe.
According to reliable reports, the contract was signed at the Jammu Convention Centre by Deepak Saigal, CEO, RHPCL and Umamaheswara Reddy, Vice President, MEIL, in the presence of Lieutenant Governor of UT of J&K, Manoj Sinha.
It may be recalled that in January 2022, RHPCL placed the turnkey contract for implementing of the 850-mw Ratle hydropower project on MEIL. The contract value is estimated at around Rs.3,500 crore.
Located on River Chenab in the Kishtwar district of the UT of J&K, the Ratle hydropower project is a run-of-river scheme equipped with an underground powerhouse with four units of 205 mw and one unit of 30 mw. (The smaller unit is for continuous release of water stipulated as the “environmental flow”.)
With a 133m high concrete gravity dam, Ratle HEP is designed to generate 3136 million kwh of electricity per year, in average conditions. The estimated cost of the Ratle hydropower project, as sanctioned by the Union power ministry, is Rs.5,281.94 crore.
Formation of JV
Incorporated in June 2021, Ratle Hydroelectric Power Corporation Ltd is a joint venture between NHPC Ltd (51 per cent) and Jammu & Kashmir State Power Development Corporation Ltd (49 per cent). RHPCL was incorporated for developing the 850-mw Ratle hydropower project, which earlier was to come up as a state government project.
In February 2019, a tripartite MoU was signed amongst JKSPDC, NHPC and erstwhile Government of Jammu & Kashmir for the development of the Ratle project. Subsequently, in January 2021, a supplementary MoU was signed between the three parties, followed by the signing of the promoters’ agreement in April 2021. These developments ultimately led to the incorporation of Ratle Hydroelectric Power Corporation Ltd.
Featured photograph (source: PIB) shows the dam site of the proposed Ratle hydropower project in Kishtwar district of UT of Jammu & Kashmir.
