Letter of No Objection on 600 MW Power Plant

RNS Number : 6119E

Oracle Coalfields PLC

05 November 2015

 

Letter of No Objection on 600 MW Power Plant



5 November 2015

Oracle Coalfields PLC

("Oracle" or the "Company")

Letter of No Objection on 600 MW Power Plant

Oracle Coalfields PLC (AIM:ORCP), the UK energy developer of a combined lignite mineral resource and mine mouth power plant located in the Thar desert in the south-east of Sindh Province, Pakistan, today announces that it has received a Letter of "No Objection" from the Central Power Purchasing Agency Guarantee Limited ("CPPA") for the Block VI mine mouth 600 MW coal fired power plant project (the "Project").

CPPA has apprised the Company that it has no objection to the site, size,  or technology of the Project.  CPPA is a federal entity which purchases power on behalf of the National Transmission and Despatch Company ("NTDC"), the state utility which owns the national electricity grid and is the seller of power to distribution companies within Pakistan. CPPA further confirms that NTDC has stated that power from the Project can be accommodated within the planned high voltage transmission line to evacuate 600 MW of power from Thar to the national grid, when commissioned.

The "no objection" for power evacuation is another key step in the process of the Private Power and Infrastructure Board ("PPIB"), part of the Ministry of Water & Power, Government of Pakistan, to allow it to issue a Letter of Intent permitting the Company to  build, own and operate the power plant. This would then allow Oracle's subsidiary, Thar Electricity (Private) Limited ("TEPL"), to enter into a Power Purchase Agreement with NTDC and an Implementation Agreement with the Government of Pakistan, providing, inter alia, a Government guarantee for the payment by NTDC for electricity supplied to it by TEPL. 

Shahrukh Khan, CEO of Oracle, said:

"This is a further step in our goal to develop a long term sustainable solution towards Pakistan's energy crisis. The Federal Government's concurrence to power evacuation from our project to the national grid is an important milestone towards financial close.

"We thank our shareholders for their continued confidence and support."

For further information:

Oracle Coalfields PLC Shahrukh Khan	[phone]
Brandon Hill Capital Limited Oliver Stansfield	[phone]
Peterhouse Corporate Finance Charles Goodfellow	[phone]
Grant Thornton UK LLP Salmaan Khawaja, Richard Tonthat, Daniel Bush	[phone]
Blytheweigh                                                    Tim Blythe, Megan Ray	[phone]
Fortbridge Consulting                                                   Matt Beale, Bill Kemmery	[phone]

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