Mumbai, April 30 (IANS): State-run electrical equipment maker BHEL said on Thursday it has commissioned the first 500 MW unit of the two allotted at Chandrapur Super Thermal Power Project (STPP) stage-III of Maharashtra State Power Generation Company Limited (MAHAGENCO).

"With this, eight units aggregating to 2,840 MW supplied and executed by BHEL are now in operation at Chandrapur STPP. Work on the second 500 MW unit of stage-III of the project is going on. The unit is expected to be commissioned in the fiscal year 2015-16," Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) said in a statement.

It said its scope of work in the contract envisaged design, engineering, manufacture, supply, erection and commissioning of steam turbines, generators and boilers, along with associated auxiliaries and electricals, besides controls and instrumentation and electrostatic precipitators.

"Significantly, BHEL has been a partner in the power development programme of the state of Maharashtra and has contributed more than 15,000 MW of generating capacity to Maharashtra, the highest in any single state," it said.