With a consumer paying Rs. 6.03 per unit including fuel surcharge, Sanjiv Goenka controlled CESC Ltd on Friday indicated power tariff was not likely to moderate.
“No,” Mr. Goenka said when asked whether there were chances of power tariff declining.
“Choice is getting power or not getting power,” Mr. Goenka said.
Mr. Goenka in CESC’s latest annual report expressed concern over coal prices.
“As coal costs rise, so will the pressure on pricing. Against this will be the concerns of State governments and State electricity boards, which will try to politically resist such pass-through whenever they can.
“Generation-cum-distribution companies such as yours will have to do a tight balancing act between the needs of the State governments on the one hand and shareholders’ value on the other. Such tightrope walking may increase in the medium term,” Mr. Goenka said in the report.
CESC has a generation capacity of close to 1250 MW and buys close to 500 MW on an average from state utility on long term contract. Summer peak demand had hit over 1900 MW.
The company pointed out that it has to buy costly power from other sources apart from the State utility.
Coal India, however, has said earlier that power cost of CESC was more as its plants consumed high grade coal the price of which has risen sharply.
