RVNL said that it has been awarded the Project Execution Agency (PEA) contract for execution of balance civil and hydro-mechanical works of the barrage complex including partial HRT (Head Race Tunnel) package of the 3×40 MW Rammam Stage-III Hydropower Project, coming up in Darjeeling district, West Bengal.
The contract, valued at Rs.495.15 crore, is expected to be completed in 66 months, RVNL said, without giving further details.
Project details
According to government reports, the Rammam-III hydropower project is a run-of-river project on the Rammam river with an installed capacity of 120 MW from three units of 40 MW each. The project will be implemented by NTPC Hydro Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of NTPC Ltd.
The project was originally sanctioned in September 2006 with an expected commissioning date of March 2012. However, due to delays caused by various factors, the commissioning date was revised to September 2019 and further to December 2024. Since the RVNL order discussed in this story has a gestation period of five and a half years, the project is likely to be commissioned only by December 2029.