Patel Engineering implementing HEPs worth Rs 6,000-cr in 4 states

Construction firm Patel Engineering is implementing hydroelectric power projects (HEP) worth around Rs 6,000 crore in four states, a top company official has said.

The company is also implementing a railway tunnel project in West Bengal, Patel Engineering CFO Kavita Shirvaikar told PTI in a telephonic interaction.

The Mumbai-based engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) firm has a strong presence in tunnels and underground works for hydroelectric and dam projects.

''We have received projects like Rs 2,240 crore Kiru HEP project in Jammu & Kashmir, Rs 1,514 crore Subansiri HEP in Arunachal Pradesh, Rs 1,251 crore Teesta hydro power project in South Sikkim, Rs 976 crore Luhri HEP in Himachal Pradesh and Rs 424 crore IRCON T7 tunnel project in West Bengal in last 2 years,'' she said replying to a question related to ongoing hydro projects of the company.

The total cost of these projects won by the company in last 24 months, comes to around Rs 6,500 crore, she said adding the company has an order-book of Rs 15,000 crore, almost double of Rs 7,000 crore in 2017.

Asked about the debt levels of the company, the CFO said, ''We hived off various non-core assets to reduce debt drastically from the peak levels of Rs 5,000 crore to present levels of about Rs 2,000 crore in last few years and expect to reduce further by Rs 400-500 crore by next year.'' In a separate statement, shared by the company, company's Chairman and MD Rupen Patel said timely monetisation of non-core assets helped accelerate the reduction of debt. The company will continue to focus on high margin work such as tunnelling and hydropower projects.

''The lenders have supported the company during the COVId-19 pandemic. We are one of the few companies to come out strong after the mayhem of debt pile-up in the past few years,'' he said.

Without sharing details, the MD said Patel Engineering is also planning to merge some of the subsidiaries with itself, which will help reduce operating costs and ensure synergies of operations.

Srisailam Left Bank Hydro Power Station in Andhra Pradesh, Teesta Hydro Electro Project Stage V in Sikkim and Ghatghar Hydro Electric Project in Maharashtra are some of the other projects done by the company earlier.

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