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AMN

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday announced that the 540MW thermal plant owned by GVK Group in the Goindwal Sahib area of Tarn Taran district has been acquired by the Punjab government.

Mann announced at a news conference that the plant was bought by the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) for ₹1,080 crore.

This is the cheapest purchase of any power plant, Mann said adding that the deal stands at ₹2 crore per MW. The project, which was set up seven years ago has 18 years of life more.

The power purchase agreement (PPA) which was inked during the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP tenure states that the Punjab government will save between ₹300 crore and ₹500 crore in generation costs by purchasing this power plant instead of what it was paying to the GVK Group, Mann added.

With this, the power to the consumers of Punjab is likely to get cheaper in the days to come. Scrutinising various PPAs was one of the election promises made by the Aam Aadmi Party before it went to Vidhan Sabha polls in 2022.