| Author | Sharma, Deepak |
| Call Number | AIT Diss. no.ET-90-3 v.1 |
| Subject(s) | Energy policy--India, North
|
| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for
the degree of Doctor of Engineering, School of Environment, Resources and Development |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | Planning and implementation of power projects in Northern
India has a poor performance record. Big construction time delays
and sizable cost overruns are the rule. Time d e lays substantially
contribute to electricity shortages. In turn , electricity
shortages have significant negative impacts on regional economic
performance, notably growth and employment . Cost overruns, on the
other hand, very appreciably increase the cost of electricity
delivered.
Sources and reasons for delays and overruns are identified
through an ex- post analysis of projects over the time period
1974-86 . The methodology followed is to juxtapose implementation
performance with the ideological and institutional context of
planning in India. Analysis reveals that much of the sources of
delays and cost overruns lie at the project formulation stages.
Deficiencies in the project selection process emerge as the
dominant reason.
What emerges as the dominant reason, of course , is the
outcome of a variety of contributing factors and combinations
thereof. Conflicts introduced by institutional interaction,
biases induced by national policy considerations, the exigencies
imposed by procedural aspects and the absence of any
comprehensive decision-making framework to provide redressal for
conflicts are major contributory factors, which, combinedly, make
delays and overruns almost inevitable.
An approach based on principles of decision analysis is
introduced. While the approach, in itself, does not reduce or
eliminate delays and overruns, it can help to eventually select
projects which better adhere to planned times and costs. The
practical value of the approach is in terms of its ability to
provide a comprehensive frame which induces thinking about the
broader issues that typically confront project choices, and also
in providing a consistent and defensible basis for analysis. |
| Year | 1990 |
| Type | Dissertation |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Other Field of Studies (No Department) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Energy Technology (ET) |
| Chairperson(s) | Codoni, Rene ;Foell, Wesley K.
|
| Examination Committee(s) | Webster, Douglas R. ; Shrestha, Ram M. |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | The Government of Japan; |
| Degree | Thesis (Ph.D.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 1990 |