The Congress has alleged that Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government were working for Adani, and one by one, all projects in the state were being handed over to Adani.
Rajesh Sharma, general secretary of Maharashtra Congress, said while important lands in Mumbai were being given to Adani at throwaway prices, there was now an attempt to give energy projects to Adani as well.
"Under the directions of Narendra Modi and Amit Shah, a 1600 MW thermal and a 5000 MW solar power project are being handed over to the Adani group. The Mahayuti government has devised a plan to award these two energy projects worth Rs 60,000 crore through a single tender," claimed Rajesh Sharma.
He added though rules stipulate that thermal and solar power projects cannot be given to the same industrial group, the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company (MSEDCL) was deliberately ignoring this rule.
"On March 13, 2024, MSEDCL began the tender process for these two energy projects. This tender process is flawed and appears to be conducted with the intent to benefit a single industrial group. If tenders for two separate energy projects were invited from multiple companies, it would have created competition and benefited the government. However, it appears that the interests of a single company are being considered for projects worth Rs 60,000 crore. This could lead to a monopoly in the energy sector, forcing customers to buy expensive electricity," alleged Sharma.
"MSEDCL is supposed to complete the resource adequacy study by September 2024 and get approval from the state regulator by October 2024. When these two energy tenders were being issued with the objective of 2034, what was the need to rush the tender process so quickly?" Rajesh Sharma questioned.
Since the necessary approvals have not been obtained in this entire tender process by the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company, the state electricity regulator has also expressed serious concerns, he alleged.
Sharma, in his letter to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, stated that the rushed tendering process aimed at benefiting a single industrialist should be halted, and a decision on this matter should be made after the assembly elections.
