TAKRAF India says NLC India Limited (NLCIL) recently awarded the company with four new orders for the revamping and maintenance of various bucketwheel excavators (BWEs).

NLCIL, incorporated in 1956, is a public sector company of the Government of India and one of the country’s largest lignite and power producers. As a Navratna entity, NLCIL has also been bestowed a prestigious status given to only a few select Indian Public Sector Undertakings, and as such has enhanced financial autonomy.

NLCIL operates three open-pit mines with a total installed capacity of 28.5 Mt/y at Neyveli, Tamilnadu, India.

Two of the orders awarded to TAKRAF India concern the major revamping of both mechanical and electrical portions of one 1,400 litre (1.4 cu.m) BWE and two 700 litre (0.7 cu.m) BWEs for other OEM supplied equipment in NLCIL’s mines.

The principal purpose of the revamping orders is to extend the operational life of the equipment.

The remaining two orders concern two maintenance contracts (mechanical and electrical respectively) with the equipment details as follows:

• Two 1,400 litre BWEs originally supplied by TAKRAF; and
• Three 1,400 litre BWEs originally supplied by another OEM.

The main purpose of the maintenance order is to reduce downtime and ensure equipment availability.

Gopal Kalyanakrishnan, Managing Director of TAKRAF India, said: “Our collaboration with NLCIL dates back more than 30 years and the newly awarded contracts are indicative of the trusting relationship between NLCIL and TAKRAF India. I sincerely thank all colleagues for their hard work and efforts. We look forward to commissioning the orders and continuing to work together to best support the needs of NLCIL in the future.”

The successful and ongoing collaboration between NLCIL and TAKRAF India dates back to the 1980s. Since then, several orders have been successfully commissioned. The orders range from the supply of various 700 and 1,400 litre BWEs, spreaders (capacity ranging from 11,000 t/h to 20,000 t/h), a mobile transfer conveyor, various stockyard equipment to similar revamping orders that TAKRAF India commissioned in 2018 and 2021.