Plan to add more capacity, raise Rs 30,000 crore in FY17: NTPC

India’s largest power generation company NTPC reported a 4.1 percent rise in profit to Rs 2,369 crore year-on-year. Total income from operations grew 11.5 percent to Rs 19,063 crore in Q1. The company plans to add 5,648 megawatts (MW) of capacity in the current fiscal, says Kulamani Biswal, Director - Finance, NTPC. In FY18, the plan is to add 6,298 MW capacity. Generation, he says, is usually lower in the second quarter. The plant load factor for FY17 is likely to be 81 percent. The company also plans to raise Rs 30,000 crore this fiscal. Of this Rs 20,000 crore will be raised from external sources, Biswal says. NTPC is interested in providing operations and maintenance services for stranded assets, but has not received any request from banks to buy such assets, he says. Below is the transcript of Kulamani Biswal’s interview to Latha Venkatesh, Sonia Shenoy and Anuj Singhal on CNBC-TV18.Latha: Your margins are exceptional probably because of the fall in coal prices. Can you take us through how things are panning out in the second quarter and in the next quarter? Can we see further expansion of your margins?A: Actually we will be consistently maintaining this margins. Of course, as you know, second quarter historically our generation would be low. Most of the units would be under the maintenance, but for third and fourth quarters we are hopeful margin will go up.Sonia: So you mean to say that you expect to do better than this 27 percent margins that you have clocked in this quarter?A: For third and fourth quarters we will maintain.Anuj: What about capacity addition targets? Would you maintain that for current financial year because the street is concerned a bit about that?A: This year, we are going to add around more than 5,000 megawatt. I will just read out the figure. We are going to add 5,648 megawatt this year and in FY18 we are going to add 6,290 megawatt.Latha: What will your capacity utilisation look like for FY17?A: Now, if you see, this quarter figure it is more than 81 percent if you go by the plant load factor (PLF) and this year our PLF will be around 81 percent. So far as this is concerned, this will be around 90 percent so far as core stations are concerned.Latha: Compared to last year, will it be lower?A: No, it will be more. And alloys, you must have seen our spread is more than 17 percent of national average. National average is 63 percent whereas our PLF is more 81 percent.Sonia: For the revival of these three sick fertilizer plants at Sindri, Gorakhpur and Barauni, the total capital expenditure (Capex) is expected at Rs 20,000 crore. What will be NTPC’s share in that Capex?A: A: Actually, now special purpose vehicle (SPV) has been formed, NTPC and Coal India (CIL). Soon Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) will join and later on Fertilizer Corporation and Hindustan fertiliser will join for that. So, as you rightly said, the total investment would be around Rs 20,000 crore and our equity participation would be around Rs 1,500 crore over a period of 5 years.Latha: Can you once again tell us what is your commissioning target? How much of your Capex will be actually be completed and begin operations?A: For this fertiliser plant?Latha: No, for your power generation. For the entire company. A: This year, Capex plan is around Rs 30,000 crore and out of Rs 30,000 crore, Rs 10,000 crore would be mobilised from internal sources and we would raise Rs 20,000 crore from t he market.Latha: No, I mean more in terms of volume. You had a commissioning target of 4.9 gigawatt. How much will actually be completed this year?A: Already we have commissioned 250 megawatt of solar this year and 215 megawatt commissioning of Bongaigaon capacity addition is there. And going forward, our this year commission will be more than 5,000 megawatt.Latha: I wanted to ask you another issue which keeps coming up with bankers. They have been trying to ask you to takeover some of the power plants which are non-performing assets (NPA) with them. Have you obliged? Are you going to take over either on an operational basis or even outright purchase of any power plants?A: Actually we are more interested in taking the operation and maintenance of those power plants rather than taking over those assets. As such, we do not have any plan or any request from the bankers to take over any assets. But as we are more interested to take over the management and operation and maintenance rather than putting our equity into the plants.For entire interview, watch accompanying video.