Adani, NLC, GMR secure green nod for thermal expansion; NTPC, Jindal, JSW held back
New Delhi: The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change’s expert appraisal committee (EAC) has cleared expansion proposals of thermal power plants by Adani Power Ltd, NLC India, and GMR Power, totalling an additional 2,470 megawatts (MW), Moneycontrol reported.
These approvals come as India accelerates efforts to add 90 gigawatts (GW) of coal-fired power over the next six years to address rising electricity demand.
With peak power requirement expected to reach 458 GW by 2032, the country aims to raise its overall generation capacity to 900 GW, up from the present 476 GW.
The EAC recommended approval for the 600 MW Lanco Amarkantak Power plant in Korba, Chhattisgarh, acquired by Adani Group in September last year.
Adani plans to expand it by 1,320 MW (660 MW x 2), aiming to increase its thermal capacity from 17.5 GW to 30.67 GW by FY32.
NLC India's Phase-II of the Talabira Thermal Power Project in Odisha, with 800 MW capacity, also received the committee's nod. Phase-I of the 2,400 MW ultra supercritical project had earlier been awarded to BHEL. Once Phase-II is complete, the total installed capacity will reach 3,200 MW.
The panel also cleared the expansion of GMR Group’s imported coal-based power plant in Odisha, adding a 350 MW unit to its existing 1,050 MW capacity.
Of the six expansion proposals reviewed on June 20, the EAC returned three—submitted by NTPC Ltd, Jindal Power, and JSW Energy—citing incomplete documentation.
NTPC’s 800 MW Stage-II expansion of the Darlipali super thermal power project was sent back with instructions to revise its application comprehensively and provide all supporting documents for fresh review.
JSW Energy’s bid to double capacity at its 1,800 MW Champa plant in Chhattisgarh was similarly returned for revision.
A proposal by Jindal Power Ltd to amend the environmental clearance for its 2,400 MW Raigarh plant in Chhattisgarh was deferred.
“Expediting environmental clearances helps avert inordinate delays and ensure timely commissioning of power plants. We will rework the documents and submit again which will take a couple of weeks,” said an NTPC official on condition of anonymity, Moneycontrol report said.
India missed its FY25 thermal power addition target by a significant margin, installing only 4.53 GW of the planned 15.4 GW.
The balance has been pushed to FY26, during which the government now aims to add 12.86 GW of new coal-fired capacity.
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