Talwandi Sabo power plant to become operational within a month The SAD-BJP government may fulfil its promise of making the state surplus this year with a rack (goods train) of coal finally reaching the Talwandi Sabo Power Plant today after a delay of over a year. The plant at Banawali village (Mansa district) is owned by the Vedanta Group. With the arrival of the coal, the plant is now ready to fully commission the first unit of 660 MW. It is likely to commence regular supply to PSPCL within a month. A spokesperson of the plant said the coal from the mines of Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL) in Odisha reached here, covering a distance of around 1,600 km, in one of the longest coal transportation systems in India. Water supply to the plant has also been started. With ten such racks required to start the plant, power generation will begin soon. The state government had promised during Assembly elections that power generation would begin by the end of 2012. However, the deadline was extended to 2013 and then later the government promised to begin generation before the paddy season. The plant seems to be set to meet the deadline. This may result in lesser or negligible power cuts this summer. Though the plant constructed by a private company has been ready for generation since mid-2013, the coal could not be arranged due to various reasons. Talwandi Sabo Power Limited (TSPL) is constructing the 1980 MW (3×660) super critical thermal power plant at Banawala village in Mansa district. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal dedicated the first unit of 660 MW to the people of the state in the presence of Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal, MP Harsimrat Kaur, and Anil Agarwal, chairman of the Vedanta group. Power surplus soon With the arrival of coal, the plant is now ready to fully commission the first unit of 660 MW This may result in lesser or negligible power cuts this summer With this, the SAD-BJP government may fulfil its promise of making the state surplus this year