Today nuclear deal is being hailed as the panacea for all our power shortage problems.
If we go a few decades back, Enron was considered as a landmark in foreign direct investment and solution to all our power crises.
In a joint venture with U.S. companies General Electric and Bechtel, Enron was to build the power plant. The project was not open to competitive bids and that the deal was too costly. World Bank analysis questioned the project’s economic viability, citing the high cost of importing and using liquefied natural gas relative to other domestic sources of fuels. Even the power purchase agreement was kept top secret. The project was a colossal failure riddled with allegation of corruption and Enron’s highhanded behaviour. Subsequently for the first time ever, the Indian government agreed to underwrite the liabilities of a private company.
Ironically the players are the same. In India, congress government in centre is negotiating with the US lobby. G.E & Bechtel were the partners with Enron. They are also major nuclear reactor suppliers. Fuel and equipment is imported and power is too expensive.
There are too many similarities to ignore. The end result would be the same. Junk equipment worth billions of dollars will be bought at taxpayer’s expense. It will be made tax exempt. Fuel will be imported. People will get power at unaffordable rates and state government will end up subsidizing it.
All in the name of national interest and attainment of power self sufficiency, we are again falling in the trap.
There are so many alternatives to solving the long term power crises. First privatize the power distribution companies. Delhi government has shown tha way. Losses are down by over 50%.Build a network of hydel plants across the Himalayan states. Setup a power trading company to buy surplus power and sell it to the power deficient states.
Why don’t we learn from history?