Congress' Shaktisinh Gohil accuses Gujarat govt of excess payment of Rs 3,900 crore to Adani Power Mundra

Gujarat Congress chief Shaktisinh Gohil on Saturday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the state of making an excess payment of Rs 3,900 crore to Adani Power Mundra Limited (APMuL) over five years under two power purchase agreements (PPA), an allegation the government denied.

Gujarat government spokesperson and cabinet minister Rushikesh Patel said the allegations were "misleading", stating that the payment was only interim and not final.

The state-run Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Limited (GUVNL) paid Adani Power Rs 13,802 crore between October 2018 and March 2023 even when the latter did not submit any invoice or supporting documents of coal procurement (for its power plants), Gohil claimed at a press conference here.

He produced a letter purportedly written by GUVNL dated May 15, 2023, to Adani Power Mundra seeking recovery of Rs 3,802 crore, excess payment made by the GUVNL towards energy charges under the two Power Purchase Agreements (PPA) signed with the latter.

The Congress leader called it a "textbook case of corruption, money laundering, loot of public money and above all, the classic case of cronyism that the Prime Minister and his government represent," and demanded a probe by the Enforcement Directorate and other agencies into the "massive scam."

GUVNL realised it made an excess payment of Rs 3,900 crore to Adani Power only after US-based Hindenburg Research exposed alleged wrongdoings of Adani Group, Gohil claimed.

In the letter, the GUVNL stated that the rate at which coal was being purchased by Adani Power Mundra was significantly higher than the actual market rate at which coal was being traded in Indonesia.

"Adani Power has been continuously procuring coal at premium price from a few selected spot suppliers which is not reflecting the actual market value of Indonesian coal from time to time and not submitting the supporting documents," stated the letter.

Responding to the allegations, minister Rushikesh Patel said a settlement deed was executed on January 2, 2022, for resolution of outstanding issues between GUVNL and APMuL, and the former requested the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) to fix the base rate for the above contract after verification, keeping in view the market price as of 15.10.2018.

As per the judgment dated June 13, 2022, of CERC, the base rate has been fixed, and this matter is under consideration before the state government and all payments will be reconciled and offset from October 15, 2018 onwards, the minister said.

"In order to maintain quality and uninterrupted power supply to the people of the state, GUVNL purchases power from Adani Power and makes interim payment till the base rate is finalised," he said.