Torrent, the majority partner in the joint venture with Gujarat Power Corporation, Siemens AG, and the UK-based Powergen plc, also plans to switch over to liquefied natural gas (LNG) as feedstock for its present plant.

The company has been in talks with a number of oil and gas companies who are planning to set up LNG pipelines in Gujarat such as British Gas, Petronet LNG and Reliance Industries. With capacity expansion, Torrent will require around two million tonnes annually for the plant.

While the present plant was set up with a cost outlay of Rs 2,300 crore, capacity addition will require an investment of only around Rs 2,000 crore as part of the infrastructure is already in place. The company has in-principle approval for extension, sources said, addingthat the proposed expansion was part of the initial agreement with the state government.

LNG is one of the most best bets for power generation but this is of little consequence if it is not available. This, in fact, has been the major reason for many projects which have been stalled as there have been no supplies of LNG.

Torrent, meanwhile, has prepared an environment impact feasibility study on project expansion. As per the present plans, the promoters will maintain their equity size even in the enlarged project.

The Gujarat-based company, which transferred all its investment in power sector to the Torrent Power Pvt Ltd (TPPL), the joint venture set up last year with MCN Energy Corp of the US, holds around 48 per cent in the ongoing project. The government of Gujarat has around 12 per cent and Powergen and Siemens AG 25 per cent and 15 per cent apiece.

The stakeholding has changed as the promotors decided to postpone the public offering programme. The company had earlier decided to sell 28 per centequity to the public which has been subscribed by the promoters in proportion to their existing equity.

Torrent also has a majority stake in the two power utilities in the state - Surat Electricity Company and the Ahamedabad Electricity Company. The company's equity in these ventures has also been shifted to TPPL, in which Torrent has a controlling stake of 60 per cent.