The Vindhyachal Station is now having an installed capacity of 3,760 MW consisting of six units of 210 MW in Stage I, two units of 500 MW in Stage II, two units of 500 MW in Stage III and one unit of 500 MW in Stage IV. The foundation stone of this NTPC-Vindhyachal Station was laid in October 1982 by the then Prime Minister Late Smt. Indira Gandhi and the first unit started functioning five years later.
Vindhyachal Station is fully coal based and the coal for the power plant is sourced from Nighai mines. The source of water for the power plant is discharge canal of Singrauli Super Thermal Power Station. Vindhyachal Station is located in Sidhi district of Madhya Pradesh and the Station is situated on the bank of Govind Vallabh Pant Sagar, popularly known as Rihand reservoir. The distance of the Station from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh and Singrauli in Madhya Pradesh is about 240 kms and 100 kms respectively.
This largest Power Station of the country has a chequered history. It was a dedicated symbol of collaboration between India and the erstwhile Soviet Union. The Stage I of the Station was implemented with techno-economic assistance from the then Soviet Government and its main equipments were also supplied by them. The approved project cost of the Stage I having six 210 MW units was Rs. 1460.37 crore with part financing by the then Soviet Government amounting to 303.66 million roubles. Similarly, the approved cost of Stage II was Rs. 2702 crore and the project authorities made use of the international assistance of US $400 million from IBRD. The approved cost of Stage III was Rs. 4125 crore and the Stage IV was Rs. 5910 crore.
The setting up of this Vindhyachal Power Station by the NTPC was a testimony of superb coordination by all the concerned agencies in achieving the targets. Stage I and Stage II were fully declared commercial in February 1992 and October 2000 respectively. Stage III was declared commercial in July 2007 and the first unit of the Stage IV was commissioned in June 2012. The next unit is expected to be commissioned in March 2013 and that will enhance the installed capacity of the Vindhyachal Station to 4760 MW.
In line with the NTPC’s strong commitment to corporate social responsibility, Vindhyachal Power Station management has ensured that the adjoining villages and the affected people get all the benefits of resettlement and rehabilitation and the community development programmes in the neighbouring areas play an effective role in transforming the lives of the people. It has been a remarkable journey for the NTPC-Vindhyachal since 1987 and the Station has received its due recognition by getting the IPPA award for the best thermal power station of the country in 2012. Earlier the Station got the CII EXIM award for strong commitment for excellence in 2005 and 2008.
NTPC-VINDHYACHAL COMPLETES 25 YEARS ON NOVEMBER 1
COUNTRY’S BIGGEST POWER STATION WINS MANY LAURELS
Special Correspondent - 2012-10-31 11:38
NEW DELHI: Vindhyachal Super Thermal Power Station of NTPC, the largest power station in the country, completes 25 years of its successful operations on November 1 this year. During this period, this power station has emerged as a jewel among the NTPC plants, winning many awards and consistently ensuring steady supplies of power to a large number of states of the country like Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Daman and Diu as also Dadra and Nagar Haveli.