Electrical Monitor
 

EMC is doubling its execution capabilities

Venugopal PillaiThursday, January 19, 2012, 12:45 Hrs  [IST]

Ani kumar dhar— Anil Kumar Dhar, President, EMC Ltd

EMC Ltd recently bagged a Rs776-crore turnkey order from Power Grid Corporation of India, envisaging 765kV transmission lines and substations. Electrical Monitor caught up with Anil Kumar Dhar to know more about this landmark order, which happens to be EMC's largest, and to understand the execution challenges in store. Dhar is confident of EMC completing this project well within the stipulated time, given its vast experience in the power transmission space since 1953. An interaction by Venugopal Pillai.

To begin with, can you elaborate on the order, describing the quantum of physical work involved?
The physical work involved is with respect to transmission lines and substations.

The award involves fabrication and supply of all types of 765kV D/C transmission line towers including river crossing towers (wherever applicable), fasteners, antitheft fasteners, step bolts, hangers, D-shackles and all types of tower accessories like phase plates, circuit plates, number plates, danger plates, anticlimbing devices, bird guards etc. Further award also involves supply of earthwire, hardware fittings and conductor and earthwire accessories and construction of a 410 km transmission line and finally testing and commissioning of the 765kV D/C transmission line from Tuticorin pooling station to Salem pooling station in Tamil Nadu.

As far as substations are concerned, the award involves design, engineering, manufacturing, testing and supply of specified equipment/ materials which includes shunt reactors, neutral grounding reactors, CBs, isolators, CTs, CVTs, surge arrestors, C&R panels, PLCC, fire protection system, hardware & insulators, substation structures, cable and lighting etc. and thereafter erection including civil works, testing and commissioning of all equipment for the 400kV Salem pooling substation, extension of 400kV Salem substation, extension of 400kV Madhugiri substation and Extension of 400kV Tuticorin pooling substation.

What inherent challenges do you foresee in this order, which we understand is your largest order from PGCIL and also your first 765 kV project?
Firstly, to put the records straight, this award undoubtedly is the largest but not the first 765kV project. EMC has already completed and commissioned a 765kV project of 134 km line length from Seoni to Mewad in Madhya Pradesh. However, this line was for single circuit while the Tuticorin-Salem line awarded is double circuit. EMC before receiving this award for 765kV D/C line has already received awards for 765kV D/C lines—Dharamjaygarh to Jabalpur (264 km), Raigarh to Raipur (196 km), among others.

As for inherent challenges are concerned, completing this 765kV D/C transmission line of 410 km in a record period of 30 months and simultaneously a 400kV substation (with a provision of 765kV/400kV in future) in a record period of 24 months itself is a huge challenge.

EMCWe understand from some infrastructure contractors that government sponsored employment schemes like NAREGA has resulted in shortage of local unskilled / casual labourers. What is your view?
It is true that availability of quality manpower these days is a big challenge and EMC's vision of meeting the challenges of trained manpower and professionals resulted in creating a facility by opening an EMC Academy with a number of eminent engineers and academicians to serve as faculty and advisors to this academy. The basic objective of EMC Academy is to mitigate the shortage of quality and suitably trained manpower that would include professionals, supervisors and workers with continuous education and hands on training.

We learn that the project in question is related to facilitate long term open access (LTOA) in South India. Can you elaborate on what the project aims to achieve in terms of power evacuation and transfer?
In line with the government's policy of integration of various grids to ensure reliable and quality power through spread of transmission lines, utilities have planned to set up enough transmission capacity covering regions of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka and this huge capacity addition will ultimately result in power-deficit states becoming power surplus.

Tell us about the impact of this order on EMC's future execution capabilities and the company's preparedness to bid for bigger orders in future.
EMC has been in the business of power transmission since year 1953 having completed several thousand kilometers of transmission line projects in India and abroad. The firstever +500 kV HVDC transmission line in India was completed by EMC way back in 1991.

At any given point of time EMC is currently capable of handling as many as thirty HV large transmission Line projects to the tune of Rs5,000 crore for which arrangements of all necessary required inputs of resources already exist. The advantage with EMC is that apart from its own factories manufacturing steel transmission line towers and power conductors etc, EMC also has tie-ups with large number of tower manufacturers for supply of towers.

In future, do you see EMC taking up 765kV substation projects and not only transmission lines?
Yes, definitely!

What is EMC's order book position and what is your take on the order inflow for the coming years?
The current order book position of EMC (post this Rs776- crore order) is Rs3,300 crore and as already mentioned earlier the company is fully equipped to do Rs5,000 crore at one go which means that we are still short of Rs1,700 crore of order book at our present level of resources.

Considering huge potential of strengthening of power transmission network in the country, arrangements are being made by EMC for the necessary resources to be upgraded for booking business to a level of Rs10,000 crore from Rs5,000 crore existing at present and simultaneously increasing the execution commitments to our various purchasers manifold.

 
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