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Ratnagiri Gas and Power

Ratnagiri Gas and Power Private Limited (RGPPL) is an Indian power generation company that operates the Ratnagiri power plant, a large gas-based combined-cycle electricity generating facility located at Anjanvel in the Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra. The company was formed to take over and revive the assets of the erstwhile Dabhol Power Company, a project originally promoted by the American energy major Enron.

Key facts

Name Ratnagiri Gas and Power Private Limited
Type Private limited company (joint venture, public sector)
Industry Electricity generation, regasified liquefied natural gas
Headquarters Maharashtra, India
Plant location Anjanvel, Guhagar taluka, Ratnagiri district, Maharashtra
Predecessor Dabhol Power Company
Fuel Natural gas / RLNG
Technology Combined-cycle gas turbine

Background

The Dabhol Power Project, originally developed in the 1990s by Enron in partnership with General Electric and Bechtel, became one of the most controversial foreign investments in Indian infrastructure. Following Enron's collapse and prolonged disputes with the Maharashtra State Electricity Board over power purchase tariffs, the plant ceased operations in the early 2000s. The Government of India subsequently arranged a restructuring of the project's ownership and debt.

Ratnagiri Gas and Power Private Limited was incorporated to take over the assets, comprising the gas-based power block and an associated liquefied natural gas (LNG) regasification terminal. The company was structured as a joint venture among public sector enterprises, with shareholding held by NTPC Limited, GAIL (India) Limited, MSEB Holding Company, and Indian financial institutions.

Operations

The Ratnagiri plant is one of the largest gas-fired generating stations in India, designed to operate on regasified LNG supplied through the on-site terminal. The facility is configured in multiple combined-cycle blocks, integrating gas turbines with steam turbines to maximise thermal efficiency. Power produced from the station is supplied to states in western and southern India through long-term arrangements.

The associated LNG terminal at Dabhol allows the import of liquefied natural gas by sea, its regasification, and onward transmission. Operation of the marine breakwater at the terminal has been a recurring engineering and logistical issue affecting LNG receipts during the southwest monsoon.

Significance

RGPPL is significant as a case study in the resolution of distressed infrastructure assets in India and as an example of public sector revival of a failed foreign-promoted project. The facility also plays a role in India's natural gas value chain, linking imported LNG to electricity generation and to domestic gas pipeline networks.

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