$648 mn WB loan for THDC hydropower project

The World Bank (WB) sig­ned a $648 million loan agreement with THDC India to bu­ild the Vishnugad Pipalkoti hydro electric project on the Alakn­anda river in Uttarakhand. The project is expected to generate an estimated 1,665 million kWh of electricity each year. The 444 MW Vishnugad Pipalkoti project will provide a valuable addition of peaking power to India's Northern Grid, which faces severe power shortages at high-consumption times. The electricity generated from the project will be supplied to the states of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Chandigarh, Delhi and Jammu & Kashmir. The project will help reduce India's greenhouse gas emissions by 1.6 million tonne each year, compared to a thermal plant of the same capacity. The project will also provide Uttarakhand with a royalty of 12 per cent of the power generated.