BHUBANESWAR: The State-run power trading company Gridco is in a deep financial crisis due to non-payment of arrears and bulk supply bills by the distribution companies (Discoms).
The four Discoms - Central Electricity Supply Utility (Cesu), North Eastern Electricity Supply Company (Nesco), Southern Electricity Supply Company (Southco) and Western Electricity Supply Company (Wesco) - owe a whopping Rs 7,657.11 crore to the bulk supplier of power till the end of November 2018.
However, Energy Minister Dibya Sankar Mishra said the outstanding dues of Discoms were Rs 6,846 crore by the end of March 2019.
The company sustained a cumulative loss of Rs 5,326.70 crore since 2008-09 mostly due to purchase of costly power to meet Odisha demand and non-approval of the actual cost by the regulatory commission.
“The Discoms have defaulted in payment of Rs 4,984.92 crore towards bulk supply of power (BSP) bills, Rs 2,135.23 crore towards securitised dues and Rs 195.36 crore as interest of NTPC bond, Rs 174 crore deferred credit and Rs 167 crore other receivables,” Gridco sources said.
The erstwhile Reliance Infra-managed Discoms have defaulted in servicing the NTPC bond of Rs 400 crore issued in favour of the national PSU to avoid power regulation to the state.
Apart from the NTPC bond, Gridco has failed to clear the dues of the state government loans and inter-corporate loans taken from Odisha Mining Corporation.
“Due to such default of Discoms in paying the power purchase dues, Gridco is forced to avail loan from different sources to make payment to the generators. The power trading utility had borrowed Rs 300 crore from the market in the last financial year to meet its power purchase obligations,” the sources said.
Even as the Discoms have opened Escrow Accounts in favour of Gridco for timely payment of the bulk supply bill, they have been requesting relaxation for withdrawal of funds for staff salary payment, repair and maintenance and meeting other expenditures.
Faced with a huge cash deficit due to non-recovery of cost and non-payment of bulk supply price (BSP) in time by the four Discoms, Gridco has recently moved the Orissa Electricity Regulatory Commission with a revision petition requesting for higher power tariff for the current financial year.
Justifying the demand for revision of BSP tariff for 2019-20, the Gridco sources said the company can no more sustain such huge financial burden.
The state power regulator which reviewed the performance of Gridco in December last year and advised the trading utility to reduce the revenue gap through trading of surplus power.