Key Information
| Full Name | Kulamani Biswal |
| Known For | Director (Finance), NTPC Limited (2013–2019) |
| Education | B.Com (Utkal University), FCMA, MBA (Newport University, USA), LL.B. (Sambalpur University), PGDFM (IGNOU) |
| Career Start | Coal India Limited, 1985 |
| Key Roles | Orissa Electricity Regulatory Commission · Central Electricity Regulatory Commission · Mahanadi Coalfields Limited · NTPC Limited · Ansal Properties and Infrastructure Ltd. |
| Notable Awards | CMA-CFO Award (2015) · Financial Pride of India (2015) · WAPS Fellowship (2015) · CFO of the Year, EPC World |
Who is Kulamani Biswal?
Kulamani Biswal is a veteran Indian finance executive best known for his tenure as Director (Finance) of NTPC Limited, India’s largest power generation company, from December 2013 to early 2019. Over a career spanning nearly three decades, he built his reputation across some of India’s biggest public-sector energy enterprises – moving from coal industry finance into electricity regulation, and eventually onto the NTPC board, where he became known for large-scale, low-cost fundraising and tight cost-of-debt management.
Early Career
Biswal holds a Commerce degree from Utkal University in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, and is a Fellow of the Institute of Cost Accountants of India. He also holds an MBA from Newport University, California; an LL.B. from Sambalpur University; and a Post-Graduate Diploma in Financial Management from IGNOU.
He started his career in 1985 with Coal India Limited, working in finance and accounts for over a decade. In 1997, he moved into power-sector regulation, joining the Orissa Electricity Regulatory Commission at Director level – the first step in a career that would increasingly centre on power-sector finance and policy.
Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (2004–2010)
In 2004, Biswal was appointed Chief (Finance) at the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC), India’s apex power-tariff regulator. Over six years there, he helped draft the 2009–14 Tariff Regulations and contributed to setting up the Power System Operation Corporation (POSOCO), which today handles national grid and load-dispatch operations. He also served as CERC’s Internal Financial Advisor.
Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (2010–2013)
In October 2010, at age 49, Biswal was appointed Director (Finance) of Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL), a Coal India subsidiary and one of India’s largest coal producers. In under four years, he is credited with helping MCL grow into the country’s second-largest coal company by production and profitability, and with leading its diversification beyond coal including the formation of Mahanadi Basin Power Limited for thermal power generation and Neelanchal Power Transmission Company Limited for transmission infrastructure in Odisha.
Director (Finance), NTPC Limited (2013–2019)
Biswal joined the NTPC board as Director (Finance) on 5 December 2013. Within his first six months, he helped resolve long-standing financial disputes with Coal India, closed NTPC’s FY14 accounts, and supported a capex target of about Rs 21,705 crore for the year, alongside raising Rs 2,250 crore through tax-free bonds and USD 350 million in foreign currency loans.
His tenure is best known for two things: aggressive, low-cost fundraising and cost-of-debt discipline. He is credited with mobilising roughly USD 750 million from international markets on attractive terms to fund NTPC’s capital expenditure, and with helping bring the company’s overall cost of debt down to about 7.81% per annum – a benchmark that drew attention across the power sector.
Awards and Recognitions
- CMA-CFO Award, Public Sector (Manufacturing) category – Institute of Cost Accountants of India, 2015, presented by Justice Deepak Misra, Supreme Court of India
- “Financial Pride of India” – Best Finance Professional, GSBA-Top Rankers Excellence Award, 2015
- Fellow, World Academy of Productivity Sciences (WAPS) – Conferred at the XVIIth World Productivity Congress, Halifax, Canada, October 2015; an honour also held by figures such as Ratan Tata and former Power Secretary R.V. Shahi
- Chairman, Governing Body, World Confederation of Productivity Science (WCPS), India (honorary)
- “CFO of the Year” Award – EPC World, with E&Y as knowledge partner, presented in New Delhi and attended by several Union Ministers of State
Board Roles After NTPC
After leaving NTPC, Biswal served as an independent, non-executive director on the board of Ansal Properties and Infrastructure Limited from June 2021, before resigning in January 2023 citing personal reasons.
FAQs
Q1. Who is Kulamani Biswal?
Kulamani Biswal is an Indian finance executive who served as Director (Finance) of NTPC Limited, India’s largest power generation company, from 2013 to 2019.
Q2. What is Kulamani Biswal known for?
He is best known for large-scale international fundraising for NTPC and for lowering the company’s cost of debt to around 7.81% per annum, along with senior finance roles at Mahanadi Coalfields and the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission.
Q3. What awards has Kulamani Biswal received?
He has received the CMA-CFO Award (2015), the “Financial Pride of India” title, a Fellowship of the World Academy of Productivity Sciences, and the “CFO of the Year” award from EPC World.
Q4. What is Kulamani Biswal’s educational background?
He holds a Commerce degree from Utkal University, is a Fellow of the Institute of Cost Accountants of India, and holds an MBA from Newport University, USA, an LL.B. from Sambalpur University, and a PGDFM from IGNOU.
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