Patna, Feb. 3: Residents of Bihar can hope for improved power supply this summer, as the state electricity board has ensured an additional 500MW besides the regular central allocation.

Bihar State Electricity Board (BSEB) would purchase the additional power from the open market under short- and medium-term plans. For this, the power board has entered into agreements with National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Ltd, New Delhi, and Adani Power, Ahmedabad.

While NTPC will supply 300MW power, Adani Power’s contribution will be 200MW. Sources said though the total power supply will still be less than the total requirement, the situation will be better than earlier summers when long-hours of power cuts had become the order of the day.

At present, Bihar generates less than 150MW and is dependent on the central sector allocation to meet its power requirement. The state gets around 1,100MW to 1,200MW from central sector daily against its peak demand of 2,500MW.

“We have been purchasing 300MW power from NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Ltd under short-term plans for the past six months. This agreement will come to an end on February 29. But the board and the power corporation have decided to extend the agreement for another six months starting from March,” a BSEB source said.

Under this plan, the board would purchase power at Rs 4.31 per unit for one year.

It will also buy another 200MW electricity from Adani Power for 46 months from March this year to December 2015. BSEB will have to pay Rs 4.41 per unit. The source added: “The board has decided to purchase 200MW from Adani Power. Both these agreements (NTPC and Adani) would ease off the pressure on the electricity board and ensure availability of power in summer.”

Sources said the board took the decision to purchase power from the open market, as the commissioning of new power plants as well as signing of memorandum of understanding with NTPC will take time. The renovation and modernisation plans at the state’s Barauni and Kanti thermal plants would miss their June 2012 deadline as a lot of work is pending.