Kohima: The Nagaland government is “making all efforts” to engage firms for studying feasibility of power projects in the state, minister Neiba Kronu has said.
The state, despite having potential sites for hydropower generation, spends more than Rs 250 crore to purchase power from other parts of the country, the planning, coordination and land revenue minister lamented.
“Nagaland is the lowest generator of electricity in the country. It spends over 250 crore annually to buy power from others, but the revenue generated through distribution does not exceed Rs 120 crore,” Kronu told reporters on Saturday after inspecting a potential hydropower project site at Tizu in Phek district earlier this week.
The minister, accompanied by power department executive engineer N Neikha, also held a meeting with village council representatives, and other leaders of Lozhaphuhu, Tezatse and Kotis hamlets in the district during the visit.
“The government is making all efforts to study feasibility of power projects in the state, including the one at Tizu. The villagers, during the recent meet, have assured us that they would cooperate with the state government for the Tizu power project,” Kronu added.
According to the 2017-18 administrative report of the power department, the state’s energy consumption during peak hours is tipped at 165 MW and off-peak hours at 100MW.
The report maintained that the energy sector is investment-intensive and therefore the state, with its limited resources, was unable to upgrade power infrastructure in sync with the demand.
“Currently, Nagaland has 2,79,974 electricity consumers. The state generates just about 84.93 MU of energy from its four power stations. However, the requirement by 2020 is expected to reach 250 MW,” the administrative report added. (PTI)
