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Palghar, Thane: Bombay Suburban Electric Supply (BSES) Ltd has once again set its eyes on the coastal village of Saphale, 20 km from here, where it wants to set up a 495 mw power plant. However, news of the proposed plant has angered local environmentalists.
S Dua, chairman and managing director, BSES, said the company would again approach the state government and the Maharashtra State Electricity Board (MSEB) with a demand to grant permission to at least start a 330 mw phase of the plant.
The power project would be based on natural gas, which would be supplied by the Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) and Reliance Industries.
The Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has already given ONGC clearance to supply enough gas to generate 330 mw of power.
The BSES would set up the plant on 650 acres of government land covering the Kandarvan, Karvale, Sartodi and Kandrebhure areas of Saphale.
Meanwhile, the Saphale Environment Protection Samiti (SEPS) is opposing the BSES project.
Convenor Advocate Deepak Bhate said SEPS would approach the Central Electrical Authority.
Bhate alleged that the BSES did not abide by the Supreme Court order to install a Rs 300 crore flue gas desulphonation (FGD) plant at Dahanu to control pollution in the form of spewing toxic sulphur waste from chimneys.
Bhate also said that ONGC would supply gas to the proposed BSES Saphale project for only seven years and questioned the need for such a huge investment as there is no other alternative for gas fuel.
In all probability, BSES would switch to unwashed coal, used in the Dahanu plant, thus spoiling the environment. He added there is no need for such a plant, whether run on gas or coal.
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