Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) has completed yet another successful year in 1999-2000, despite operating in a highly competitive environment and subdued industrial climate in the country which witnessed declining trend in the sale price of products. Major highlights of performance during the year 1999-2000 are summarised below:

BHEL continued to demonstrate its competitiveness by bagging most of the power plant orders  placed during the year under open International Competitive Bidding in the country. Orders  worth Rs 4008 Crore were booked as against Rs.3281 Crore booked last year.

Notable orders booked, including those against International Competitive Bidding (ICB), are :

 Despite subdued market conditions and severe competition, the Industry Sector booked orders worth Rs.2503 Crore, as against Rs.2304 Crore booked last year. Sustained focus on customer response and project management resulted in BHEL retaining an overall success rate of over 60%.

Significant orders booked against intense competitive bidding include :

•  First 800 HP Diesel Hydraulic shunting Loco was developed and supplied to IFFCO, Kandla, during the year.

 Continuing the momentum gained in overseas business, the company achieved a quantum jump in physical exports, recording the highest ever export order inflow of Rs.703 Crore as against  Rs.250 Crore of last year - an increase of 181%. This performance has been achieved while  operating in a highly competitive internatio- nal market witnessing structural changes and  consolidation of major power equipment manufacturing companies.

During the year, BHEL secured orders for four prestigious gas-based and hydro projects, each  one of which signifies a major step forward.

 Continued focus on product and services export led to notable successes during the year, including orders for Transformers from Azerbaijan and Greece; Shunt Reactors from Greece; Spares and services from Oman, Malaysia, Malta, Libya and Cyprus; Insulators from UK, Nepal, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and France; Valves from USA and Japan; Load gear boxes for Gas Turbines from France and Electrics,including Motors, Controls and Power distribution system for a cold rolling mill from Bangladesh.

As a result of thrust on the after -market service business in overseas markets, BHEL completed rehabilitation work for 50 MW Boiler at Siddhirganj Power Station in Bangladesh. In  addition, overhauling of 2 Boilers of 30 MW each was carried out at Al Arish power project in Egypt, under BHEL's supervision.

In a record time of just 2 months, a 3 MW brushless alternator was manufactured and exported  to Vietnam.

Other export orders executed during the year include: Valves to USA, Japan and Kuwait; Insulators to UK, UAE, Saudi Arabia and Nepal; Transformers to Greece, Oman and Jordan and Spares and Services to Libya, Oman, Malta, Cyprus and Malaysia.

•  BHEL continued to upgrade its capability for providing/syndicating finances to customers on selective basis. BHEL has organised lines of credit from leading Financial Institutions like ICICI, IDBI and IFCI and major banks such as SBI as a sales-aid-financing measure. During the year, a large committed competitive credit was offered for a project.

 During the year, the company added 59 sets of 3522 MW in the country, including 10 nos. of 199 MW captive/industrial sets and 8 nos. of 128 MW diesel sets for India's largest diesel power plant at Kozhikode.

With this, the installed capacity of BHEL sets went up to 62,460 MW and BHEL maintained its  share of nearly 65% in the country's total installed capacity of 97,059 MW.

Major power projects commissioned during the year include:

 In addition, the first 2 sets at the 90 MW (3x30 MW) Gas Turbine based turnkey power plant of Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) were commissioned during the year. Significantly for the  first time in PDO's history, an EPC contractor - BHEL - has been awarded the 'Best Contractor's Camp Award' for measuring upto the exacting standards of Health, Safety and  Environment, stipulated by 'Shell' worldwide.

In the Transmission sector, the 1500 MW + 500 kV Chandrapur-Padghe HVDC project was  commissioned and handed over to MSEB. Also, power flow was achieved at the + 200 kV National HVDC Stage II project between Barsoor and Lower Sileru, successfully demonstrating the  national capacity for HVDC technology.

 BHEL-built thermal sets achieved the highest ever Plant Load Factor (PLF) of 68%, which was higher than the national average. The Operating Availability (OA) of these sets was 80.2%. BHEL-make 200/210/250/500 MW thermal sets, which form the backbone of the country's thermal generating capacity, operated at an all time high PLF of 74.3%. BHEL supplied sets generated  305.70 Billion Units of electricity, constituting 72% of the total electricity generated in  the country during 1999-2000.

Notably, 107 BHEL-built thermal sets achieved PLF of over 70%, of these 23 sets achieved PLF of over 90% and 47 achieved PLF of between 80 to 90%.

BHEL built nuclear sets achieved the highest ever PLF and OA of 78.2% and 85.9%, respectively.

BHEL hydro sets achieved the highest ever unit availability of 98.15%.

BHEL built hydro sets at the 336 MW Chukha HEP in Bhutan broke all previous records

by  generating 1944 Million Units (MUs) during 1999, due to 100% availability of BHEL sets.

BHEL built 500 MW (Unit 6) at Trombay TPS has been running continuously for over a year.

 To facilitate uninterrupted power supply and to keep power plants in good running condition, BHEL overhauled the highest ever 100 utility and industrial thermal sets equivalent to 19,773 MW, including 10 non-BHEL sets equivalent to 2257 MW.

A 201 MVA, 400/21kV single phase Generator Transformer of Peebles UK make at NTPC Rihand was repaired in a record time of 9 months.

BHEL reinforced its commitment to providing prompt and efficient customer service by  successfully renovating a turbogenerator at Essar Steel Limited's Captive Power Plant at  Hazira, in Gujarat, in a record time of just 45 days. The turbogenerator, of 11 MW capacity was badly damaged causing a major hurdle in production.

 As a commitment towards Total Quality Management (TQM), in line with CII/EFQM guidelines,annual improvement action plans are being implemented involving techniques like;Benchmarking,Business Process Re-engineering, Six Sigma and Gemba Kaizen. These are resulting in cycle time reduction for further improvement in delivery and technological process upgradation, leading to improvement in quality of products and enhanced customer focus,on continuous basis.

To fulfil its role of a corporate citizen towards protection and conservation of the environment and ensuring that its products and systems also meet such requirements, BHEL has finalised a Corporate Environment Management Policy for ISO14001 certification.

•  During the year, a turnover of over Rs.530 Crore was achieved by commercialising products and systems through in-house R&D/technology developments.

 100 kW Grid Interactive solar power plant has been commissioned at Kiltan Island, Lakshadweep and supplies for another 100 kW Grid Interactive solar power plant at Minicoy Island,Lakshadweep have been completed.

BHEL-supplied Wind Electric Generators (8x250 kW) were successfully commissioned at the first windfarm of Rajasthan at Amarsagar (Jaisalmer). So far, 296 WEGs equivalent to 66 MW have been supplied to various customers.

As BHEL's own contribution to green power, a 4 MW windfarm has been commissioned and synchronised with the Grid at Kadavakallu in AP. Besides, three Grid Interactive solar power plants, totalling 100 kW, have been commissioned at BHEL offices in Delhi and Noida.

Highest ever orders for 11,500 nos. portable Solar PV Lanterns were received during the year  for use in rural areas.

 BHEL has become the forerunner in taking up manufacture of sub and super critical Once-Through Boilers by entering into a Technical Collaboration Agreement (TCA) with Babcock  Borsig ower GmbH, Germany - one of the technology leaders in Once Through Boilers. For the  upcoming mega power projects in the country, the installation of Once-Through Boilers with  super-critical parameters will not only improve efficiencies but also be environment friendly with lower emission of gases like SOx and NOx.

BHEL has also entered into a TCA with Apparatebau Rothemuehle Brandt + Kritzler Gmbh, Germany-a company providing technical solutions in the field of energy and environment, for the manufacture of state-of-the-art pollution control equipment called 'Fabric Filters'. With the introduction of stringent pollution control regulations in the country, manufacture of Fabric  Filters assumes significance as customers are now looking for high efficiency and cost effective pollution control equipment.

•  As a result of individual and collective efforts, a number of national and international awards have been bagged by various units and employees of BHEL.

 BHEL and its employees also contributed to the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund for rendering relief to the victims hit by the Super Cyclone in Orissa. Besides, BHEL employees extended medical and other assistance to the cyclone victims.

Various welfare activities, including medical camps and infrastructure support to schools in adopted villages, were undertaken, during the year.

•  BHEL has taken several initiatives to address the requirements of the changing business

 environment and market needs.