The Odisha Electricity Regulatory Commission (OERC) on Wednesday revoked the licences of three Reliance Infrastructure managed power distribution companies operating in different regions of Odisha for their abysmal performance.
While disposing of the suo motu proceedings initiated against NESCO, WESCO and SOUTHCO, a three-member Bench of the Commission headed by its chairman S.P. Nanda revoked under Section 19 of the Electricity Act, 2003 with immediate effect.
The licences in favour of the three utilities were granted on March 31, 1999 and the Bench of the Commission revoked the licences for violation of Section 19 of the Electricity Act, 2003 for highly unsatisfactory performance of the licensees in different key areas, such as energy audit, inability to control technical and commercial loss, poor billing efficiency etc.
“Licences can be revoked if one of the conditions prescribed in Section 19 of the Act is satisfied. But in the present case which is one of the rarest of rare case where all the conditions described in Section 19 of the Act are satisfied,” the Bench observed in its 87-page order.
Consequently, by a separate order the Bench appointed Hemant Sharma, Chairman-cum-Managing Director of GRIDCO as Administrator of the three utilities.
The Bench vested the management and control of NESCO, WESCO and SOUTHCO along with their assets, interests and rights with CMD of GRIDCO in order to ensure the maintenance of continued supply of electricity in the Northern, Western and Southern Zone in the interest of consumers and the public interest at large.
Making the interim arrangement under Section 20(d) of the Electricity Act, the Commission Bench ordered that all existing employees and executive staff attached to the utilities of NESCO, WESCO and SOUTHCO shall function under the direction and administrative control of Administrator and shall be accountable to him.
Any person who is not a regular employee of the utilities and has come from other organisation on deputation or secondment shall be repatriated. Their services shall immediately be dispensed with and the administration shall ensure that no payment is made to them by the utilities after this order, the Bench said.
All the data bases relating to licensed functions including consumer details, billing, collection, network and asset details, and financial transaction shall be taken over by the Administrator, the Bench ordered.
For highly unsatisfactory performance of the licensees in different key areas
In a separate order, court appoints CMD of GRIDCO as Administrator of the three utilities
