India's MSETCL Takes Over INR 5.6 Billion Musalgaon Transmission Project

en.Wedoany.com Reported - REC Power Development and Consultancy Limited (RECPDCL) of India has officially handed over the project company Musalgaon Power Transmission Limited to Maharashtra State Electricity Transmission Company Limited (MSETCL). MSETCL had previously emerged as the winning bidder through a competitive bidding process based on transmission charges, and will implement the intra-state transmission project under the Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) model, with an estimated investment of approximately INR 5.6 billion and a planned construction period of 12 months.

The core facility of the project is a new 220/132/33kV Musalgaon air-insulated substation, along with two main sets of transmission lines. Among them, approximately 111 km of 220kV double-circuit lines will be built from Musalgaon to the existing Bableshwar and Raymond substations; approximately 13 km of 132kV double-circuit lines will also be built from Musalgaon to the existing Sinnar substation. The two line sections total approximately 124 km.

The project therefore forms a complete implementation scope comprising "a new three-voltage-level substation + 220kV backbone double-circuit lines + 132kV double-circuit lines + connection to existing substations." The project is not a single substation construction project, nor a line equipment procurement contract; after the winning bidder takes over the project SPV, it will assume responsibility for subsequent project financing, engineering design, equipment procurement, construction, commissioning, and operation under the BOOT model.

Musalgaon Power Transmission Limited was previously established by RECPDCL, which undertook project development and competitive bidding organization. After MSETCL won the bid through the competitive bidding process based on transmission charges, it officially took over the project company on September 9, with project control transferring from the earlier bidding organizer to the actual implementing entity. This milestone means the project has moved further from "winning the bid" to the "SPV handover + construction preparation" stage, but it cannot yet be written that line construction has commenced.

According to the 12-month implementation period disclosed by RECPDCL, MSETCL will advance project financing, line engineering design, substation equipment procurement, tower foundation and line construction, as well as connection works at the existing Bableshwar, Raymond, and Sinnar substations in the next phase. As the project requires multi-point connections within the existing 220kV and 132kV networks, substation construction and line evacuation works need to be implemented simultaneously.