Bhel gets in-principle nod to raise capacity

Bharat Heavy Electricals (Bhel) has received an in-principle approval from the government for third-phase expansion to achieve equipment capacity of 20,000 mw by 2011-12. As per the initial estimates, the company has earmarked an outlay of Rs 2,200 crore for the purpose. The power equipment manufacturer is in the process of scaling up its capacity to 15,000-mw by January 2010 from the existing 10,000-mw, for which it is investing Rs 3,200 crore. This year, it plans to increase capital investment by 52 per cent to Rs 1,106 crore as against Rs 726 crore in the previous year. “The company will prepare a detailed proposal by May-June and take the board’s approval,” Bhel chairman and managing director K Ravikumar told Financial Chronicle. The company’s order book rose 19 per cent in 2008-09 to Rs 59,687 crore worth of projects as against Rs 50,270 crore in the previous year. With this, Bhel has ended up with a cumulative order book for execution in 2009-10 and beyond worth Rs 1,17,000 crore. In the power sector business segment, Bhel secured orders worth Rs 44,407 crore, for 17,020 mw power plants. Highlights of the year included the first-ever orders for 800 mw supercritical boilers, 660 mw supercritical turbine generator sets and the largest number of orders for eight sets of 600 mw. The company simultaneously retained a 100 per cent share of the rehabilitation and maintenance market for thermal sets for the third successive year, with orders of Rs 2,770 crore including the supply of spares and services. To pursue inorganic growth, tie-ups are being explored in the areas of transmission, with a focus on 765 kv and 1,200 kv segments.