NEW DELHI: The Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC), the city’s power regulator, has allowed distribution companies to impose an additional fuel and power purchase adjustment surcharge (FPPAS) of up to eight per cent on consumers for a second month, which could inflate monthly electricity bills further.
Last month, the DERC permitted the power discoms to impose additional surcharge for April at the rate of 7.94% to BSES Rajdhani Power Limited (BRPL), 7.43% to BSES Yamuna Power Limited (BYPL) and 6% in case of Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL). An order issued by the DERC on July 10 stated that the FPPAS for May was calculated at 25% for BRPL, 19.91% for BYPL and 12.21% for TPDDL.
The three power discoms in June and July had sought relaxation from the DERC on the ground that the actual power purchase cost for May increased significantly as compared to the prevailing base power purchase cost.
As per the DERC regulations, there is a cap of 10% on this surcharge in a billing cycle. The surcharge is determined by the DERC monthly. It is calculated as a percentage of the total of the fixed charge and the energy charge of a consumer.
The DERC has allowed the discoms to recover, in addition to the capped FPPAS of 10%, the additional FPPAS for May, thereby removing the difficulties they faced in recovering “at least the reasonable part of the increase” in power purchase costs, according to the order.
The additional FPPAS is permitted at the rate of 7.94% for BRPL, 7.43% for BYPL and 2.21% for TPDDL. The maximum total FPPAS permitted for May in 17.94% in the case of BRPL.