BHUBANESWAR: Putting the State government in a spot, senior BJD leader and Khandapada MLA, Soumya Ranjan Patnaik on Saturday filed objections to the Aggregate Revenue Requirement (ARR) for the year 2022-23 and tariff applications of four State-run power utilities and four Tata Power managed distribution companies.
Patnaik, a strong critic of the Odisha Electricity Regulatory Commission (OERC) for some of its controversial regulatory mechanism and tariff orders passed for the current fiscal, is the first sitting MLA of a ruling party to intervene in the tariff proceedings in the last 25 years of the Commission’s existence.
In his petitions, Patnaik submitted that the OERC has failed to realise the basic objectives of the power sector reforms in the State. The prime aim of the State government to initiate reforms was to supply 24X7 hours quality electricity to consumers living in every corner at affordable price. Despite capital grant investment of about Rs 20,000 crore in the last decade for augmentation of distribution supply infrastructure of the four distribution companies (discoms), there has been no significant improvement.
Expressing concern over the non-capitalisation of the assets created out of government assistance in the balance sheets of discoms sold to Tata Power, Patnaik said that many important issues like unaccountable inadvertent power, mismatch of OERC data with CEA data, obsolete methods to forecast sales, power purchase and determination of transmission tariff, non-separation of SLDC from OPTCL, cost based tariff, normative loss and multiyear tariff are yet to to be duly addressed by the Commission,
Taking strong exception to the ARR petition filed by GRIDCO, the bulk power supplier to the State, the former MP alleged that the latter has no locus standi under the Electricity Act, 2003, which does not provide any space for any power trader to file ARR and tariff application before OERC.
He urged the Commission to dismiss the petition of GRIDCO and pass the Central Electricity Authority’s General Review-2021 and tariff report in the proceedings specifying the crucial roles, functions and authority of CEA under the provisions of the Act. Contacted, the BJD legislator said the objection should not be viewed politically. “I did it to create awareness among people which should not be seen politically,” he added.
Patnak has filed objections to the ARR and tariff application of State owned OHPC, OPGC, GRIDCO, OPTCL and the four discoms namely TPCODL, TPWODL, TPSODL and TPNODL.