Shinde said he would be going to the site on March 25. ''We will run the project on naptha as the procurement of gas is yet to be tied up,'' the minister said at a PowerGrid conference in New Delhi.
Naptha will be used during peak period and the procurement is currently being worked with Iran and and Oman. The minister said gas will be available within a year as environment and pricing have to be considered.
Qatar is expected to supply 2.1 million tonnes a year of liquefied natural gas from December to fire the power plant.
Petronet India Ltd is negotiating with Rasgas of Qatar for gas supplies for the Dabhol plant.
The Enron built plant is now controlled by Ratnagiri Gas and Power Private Ltd owned by GAIL (India) Ltd and the National Thermal Power Corp Ltd.
Petroleum ministry sources said LNG supplies for the project had been firmed up for two and a half years.
The Dabhol power plant that would restart before May will work initially for just three hours per day, Power Secretary, R V Shahi said.
The mothballed project was shut down in May 2001 after a billing dispute with its customer, Maharashtra State Electricity Board.
The plant's first phase of 744 MWs is operational and the work on the remaining phase is nearing completion.
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