BHUBANESWAR: Sale of hydropower to Chhattisgarh at subsidised rate amid the inter-state dispute over sharing of Mahanadi water which rocked the Assembly last year figured prominently during the public hearing of annual revenue requirement (ARR) and tariff application of the Odisha Hydro Power Corporation (OHPC).
Most of the objectors contested OHPC’s argument for not taking into account the cost of power sold to the neighbouring state in the aggregated revenue requirement and tariff applications for 2022-23. They urged the Odisha State Electricity Regulatory Commission (OERC) to take the same into account while determining tariff for the next fiscal. The sale of 5 MW power from Hirakud Hydro Electric Project to Chhattisgarh State Power Development Corporation Limited (CSPDCL) has not been reflected in the ARR for 2022-23.
Objecting to the OHPC contention that if the cost of power sold to the Chhattisgarh utility is accounted for in the ARR, it is bound to increase the hydropower tariff with consequent effect on the bulk supply price (BSP), the objectors argued that power sold to Chhattisgarh cannot be kept outside the purview of the ARR approved by OERC.
Since the power is sold to CSPDCL at a tariff higher than the tariff determined for Gridco, the bulk supplier of power to the state, the OHPC ARR should be reduced.Moreover, OHPC cannot keep the power sale to CSPDCL outside the purview of ARR because it is the core tariff income of the petitioner and the stakeholders deserve to know about the transaction.
The objectors urged the commission that the cost of state government assistance to OHPC may be considered while determining the tariff applicable to CSPDCL for the 5 MW power supply. The subsidies and concessions allowed by the state government to Hirakud project cannot be passed on to CSPDCL more so when Odisha is in a legal tangle with Chhattisgarh over Mahanadi water dispute. The tariff applicable for power sale to CSPDCL cannot be less than the average bulk supply price determined for distribution companies.