India’s National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) will commission the first unit of the stage-II expansion project of Simhadri Super Thermal Power Station by March 2011.

NTPC regional executive director (South) Ambarish Nath Dave told The Hindu that the expansion work to double the capacity of the project to 2,000MW would be completed by the end of 2011-12.

Simhadri, the first shore-based power plant, is adding two units each with 500MW in Stage II with an investment of about INR49bn ($1.1bn).

In 2002, two units of 500MW were synchronised.