DVC Seeks Single Regulator for Uniform Tariff

Kolkata, Apr 3 (PTI) The Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) on Wednesday said it has sought a single regulator to ensure uniform tariff for both Jharkhand and West Bengal command areas, an official said.

Currently, the respective electricity regulatory commissions of both the states decide upon their end-consumer power tariff.

During an interactive session with the Merchants' Chamber of Commerce here, DVC Chairman S Suresh Kumar said the difference in tariff is causing issues among consumers of the same discom but residing in different states.

"We want uniform tariff for our command area, which covers parts of Jharkhand and West Bengal. We have already sent our proposal to the Ministry of Power and are awaiting a response," said Kumar.

The generation and transmission tariff is fixed by the central regulator CERC, but distribution tariffs are finalised separately by the West Bengal and Jharkhand state electricity regulatory commissions, he added.

The average tariff difference gap is approximately 50 paisa, with consumers in Bengal paying more. Some DVC industrial consumers in West Bengal have claimed that they are paying nearly Re 1 more. DVC aims for the distribution tariff to be fixed by the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission to avoid ambiguities, litigations, and aid revenue growth, he added.

DVC member Arup Sarkar mentioned that there is no need to change the DVC Act for this proposal, as the corporation has been advocating for uniform tariff for some time.

However, both state governments need to give their approval for this proposal. DVC is jointly owned by the Union government, West Bengal, and Jharkhand.

DVC's major consumers are industrial, with around 350 industrial high tension consumers spread over both states in the eastern region.

Meanwhile, Kumar highlighted that the corporation is identifying inefficiencies, moving towards green power, and adding new thermal capacities.

The joint venture project for a 1,000 MW pump storage power plant at Panchet with the West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company is progressing well, with joint venture agreements likely to be formalised after general elections, he added. The capex is expected to be Rs 7,000 crore.

Kumar also mentioned that the company is adding 4,000-4,500 MW of fresh thermal capacity while emphasising green power, including solar harnessing land and dam reservoirs.

DVC previously announced a capex of Rs 50,000 crore over the next 7-8 years to ramp up its capacity to 14,000 MW in thermal and hydel power. The current installed capacity is about 7,000 MW in thermal, hydel, and solar.