VIJAYAWADA: Energy secretary Srikant Nagulapalli has said that the efforts to strengthen and revive power sector were proving effective as the power utilities managed to reduce the total Aggregate Technical and Commercial (AT&C) losses to 13.36 per cent in 2019-20 from 16.36 per cent in 2018-19. He added that highest priority was being given for making power cost-effective and thereby pass the benefits onto the consumers.
The Energy Secretary, in a statement on Saturday, said that measures to bring down unnecessary expenditure, and procure power at cheaper rates were in place in the last one year. He also said that the Aggregate Revenue Realised - Average Cost of Service (ARR - ACS) gap also reduced to Rs 1.45 per unit (Rs 8,120 Cr) in 2020 from Rs 2.26 per unit (Rs 12,325 cr) in 2019.
“The government is also taking steps to make the State destination for cost-effective power. Achieving cost-effective power will benefit every consumer in the State and boost industrial and economic development for which the efforts of entire employee community, engineers of power sector in particular, are highly appreciable,” he said.
Srikant added that focus has been laid on giving qualitative power round-the-clock with zero interruptions and free nine-hour power to agriculture connections.
“The State government has become successful in implementing 9-hour free power scheme with supply of power to around 95 per cent of agriculture feeders across the State within a record time of one year. The free power will be provided to 100 per cent of feeders by Rabi season. The utilities are taking special care to ensure free power to every pumpset in the State,” he said.