Essar lifts output in first quarter of year
INDIA-facing power and refinery firm Essar Energy ramped up production by 29 per cent in the first quarter, according to its quarterly results released yesterday.
Plant generation was up by 29 per cent year on year, driven mainly by the recently-commissioned Salaya coal-fired power plant.
The Salaya power plant in east India has good availability of 69 per cent as it continued to ramp up to full capacity, said Essar.
During the quarter ending 30 June, Essar’s plants generated a total of 1,945 megawatt hours, compared to 1,502 over the same quarter of last year.
Essar said production at its Vadinar refinery had increased by 24 per cent due to the early completion of an expansion programme in March this year.
This has led to a 12 per cent increase in the refinery’s gross margin per barrel of oil to $4.69 (£2.99).
A full year target of 65 per cent plant load is in place, although Essar admits this might be challenging based on water availability.