NTPC an "innocent victim" of RIL's corporate greed:Anil Ambani

New Delhi, Aug 2 (PTI) Terming NTPC as an "innocent
victim" of Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Limited's
corporate greed, Anil Ambani Sunday warned that the power PSU
could lose up to Rs 30,000 crore if it did not get gas at the
committed rate of USD 2.34 per mmbtu.

Offering every possible cooperation to National Thermal
Power Corporation (NTPC), Anil sought a meeting with Indian
Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde to clarify that his group
company, Reliance Natural Resources Limited (RNRL), was not at
all attempting to scuttle the PSU's chance of getting 12
mmscmd gas, contrary to "speculative media reports and
misinformation campaign by vested interests".

In a letter to Shinde, Ambani, who is fighting a bitter
battle with RIL for getting 28 mmscmd gas at 2.34 per mmbtu,
said, "We firmly believe that NTPC, like RNRL, is an innocent
victim of RIL's corporate greed, which is reflected in its
attempt to back out of its solemn and legal contractual
commitments."

Anil Ambani had earlier written a letter to Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh last month wherein the industrialist
urged Singh to direct the petroleum ministry to "cease from
overtly and covertly attempting to intervene in our commercial
dispute with RIL".

Anil had written the letter in the wake of Petroleum
Ministry moving the Supreme Court seeking annulment of a
Memorandum of Understanding between Mukesh-led RIL and Anil
group firm RNRL.

"We have recently seen a spate of unfortunate public
utterances with unusual frequency, by various functionaries in
the Petroleum Ministry... in a manner not witnessed in any
other part of the government that too on a matter that is
sub-judice in the Hon'ble Supreme Court," Anil's letter to
Singh said.

And now in a letter to Shinde, he said, "I would want to
assure you in all sincerity, sir, that we would be delighted
if NTPC, a navratna, gets its rightful share of 12 mmscnd of
gas for 17 years at a price of USD 2.34, which was discovered
through open transparent international competitive bidding in
2004."

Expert opinion and independent financial analysis suggest
that NTPC could potentially lose over Rs 20,000 crore if the
gas price is revised from USD 2.34 to USD 4.2, he said, adding
that this loss could be even higher and touch Rs 30,000 crore,
based on cost of alternate fuels.

"Beyond this, the biggest impact would be that these NTPC
plants may never come up thus affecting power capacity
addition in the country," Ambani said.

Petroleum Minister Murli Deora is also scheduled to make
a statement on the floor of the Lok Sabha tomorrow on the
issue of gas supply to Anil Ambani promoted Dadri power plant
which has been lingering for the assured supply of fuel. PTI
SKB
dep
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