The state government is considering whether to revive the Kynshi hydro power project with the original contractor, Power Minister Abu Taher Mondal said today.
The Joint Committee of Local People on Kynshi Hydro Power Project (JCLPKHPP) met the minister today to seek clarification regarding thes status of the project.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Mondal said, “The most important thing is that the local people now want to cooperate with the department and the agency that will execute the project. I am very optimistic because we need more [power] generation. Without generation, we cannot enhance our power position.”
It was announced in 2022 that the government had decided to cancel the agreement signed with Athena Power Pvt Ltd and the JayPee Group for the construction of Kynshi Stage 1 and Kynshi Stage 2 hydro projects. The project developers had expressed their inability to continue.
Today Mondal explained that the project was initially allotted to Athena Pvt Ltd under the RoR (Run-of-River) model. However, a proposal was later made to convert it into a hybrid model, combining RoR and a pump storage project (PSP), which delayed implementation due to lack of provisions in the state’s power policy.
“The old MoU (memorandum of understanding) was based only on the Run-of-River model. As they wanted to add the PSP component, and since our earlier power policy didn’t include PSP, the cabinet decided to scrap the old MoU. Now, they want to revert to the original RoR model without the PSP. So, we’ll have to take it to cabinet again to reinstate the old MoU,” Mondal said.
He clarified that no fresh MoU has been signed yet, but the government plans to revive the old one.
When asked about the power generation capacity, Mondal said the company is working on the details and will inform the government soon. “They will be coming back with the specifics on generation capacity. Hopefully, we will move forward based on that,” he added.
Regarding ownership, Mondal informed that the hydropower unit will be owned by the company. “The state government will get 12 percent free power and 1 percent free power will be used for local area development,” he added.
He also welcomed the suggestion of the JCLPKHPP to hold a joint meeting involving all stakeholders. When asked about the number of landowners to be affected, the minister could not give an answer, saying that this will be ascertained only once the submersible area is finalised.
