India

Minister of Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh has allowed erection of the remaining five radial gate the 400 MW Maheshwar project.

India's Lanco Infratech is seeking $5.6bn in loans to fund power generation projects in India over the next 15 months.

Pakistan and Russia on Thursday signed four Memorandum of Understandings on energy cooperation, air space, promotion of investment and cooperation in agriculture sectors. The MoU on energy cooperation was signed by Advisor to Prime Minister on Petroleum and Natural Resources Dr. Asim Hussain and Russian Minister for Energy Sergei Shnatro. The MoU on agriculture cooperation was signed by Russian Acting Minister for Agriculture Kovolev while Pakistan Minister for Agriculture and Food was represented by Pakistan envoy in Moscow Mohammad Khalid Khattak while the MoU on promotion of investment between the two countries was signed on Wednesday between the two countries by Chairman Board of Investment Salim H Mandviwala and chairman Russian National Investment Agency. President Asif Ali Zardari and his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev witnessed the signing ceremony. The MoU in energy fields would encourage development of Pakistan’s oil and gas fields, development of petroleum and natural gas storages in Pakistan, improvement of Pakistan’s natural gas infrastructure, project for using natural gas as a motor fuel. A Russian Company Stroytransgaz,  as said in the joint communiqu’, has expressed keen desire to build transnational gas pipeline projects of Pakistan from Turkmenistan, Iran or Qatar. Similarly, Gazprom Geoservice Petroleum Company has agreed to construct oil and gas storage facilities and would also help in the training of Pakistani oil and gas experts and the experts of leading Russian companies have already visited Pakistan. For promotion of agriculture in Pakistan, the main Russian automobile manufacturers are interested to invest in Pakistan and the MoU on  agriculture sector would promote the agriculture sector of Pakistan. For the promotion of investment in Pakistan, Lada is interested to manufacture cars of 1300 cc, Samara to manufacture cars of 800 cc, Nova group to manufacture 800 cc cars. There is also a proposal by Russian companies Chelyabinsk and Traktorexport for manufacture of Russian tractors in Pakistan. The Russian businessmen are keen to invest in Pakistan in telecommunication, banking, energy and infrastructure building and expansion of Pakistan Steel Mills Karachi.

Pakistan opened a 330 MW nuclear plant built with the help of China.

Bangladesh signed contracts with two companies to set up three base-load power plants and one peaking plant having total generation capacity of 1167 MW.

FICCI has called for a higher priority in allocation of coal to the power sector.

Mandakini B Coal Corporation Ltd. is expected to start exploration work at the site in April 2011.

The Ministry of Coal has asked the Government of Orissa to expedite the process of grant of mining lease and Stage-II forest clearance for Utkal C coal block.

Toshiba JSW power equipment production facility in Chennai, Tamil Nadu will soon commence production of supercritical steam turbines and generators. These ranges from 500 MW to 1,000 MW, for thermal power plants in India. Output will be ramped up in stages, with the facility eventually being able to manufacture steam turbines and generator for producing 3 GW of electricity. The blade shop equipment at the facility has been installed. Besides, the warehouse for storing the building materials and various equipment has been set up at the plant. Further, trial production has commenced and the company expects commercial readiness at the end of the fiscal year 2011-12.

Work on the BoP components of Unit 1 of the 1,050 MW Maithon Right Bank Thermal Power Project is likely to be finished by the end of June 2011.

 Seventy-seven per cent of the work at Tata Power's 4,000 MW Mundra ultra mega power project has been completed.

JSW Energy Limited has set a deadline of May-end for submission of technical and commercial bids for its 240 MW Kutehr HEP.

Adani Power plans to double its power generation capacity to 3,960MW in the current fiscal year.

ABB won an order worth about $15 million from Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd.

Power Grid Corporation of India is expected to finalise a contract for leasing out its tower infrastructure for telecommunication by the end of May.

The government of Rajasthan has approved a new solar power policy aimed at encouraging construction of 3 GW of solar energy capacity in the next six years.