While a five per cent to 20 per cent hike in power tariffs is imminent within the coming weeks, Delhi’s power regulator is swiftly moving ahead with its process of annual tariff revision.
The Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) is likely to hold a public hearing for the discoms’ annual revenue requirement (ARR) petitions by mid-June. This means that in a span of two to three months Delhiites may witness an increase in rates of power of up to 40 per cent.
The move comes soon after the Delhi High Court granted permission to the Commission to proceed with its mandatory task of tariff revision.
“The High Court maintained in its order that the DERC has rightfully uploaded the executive summary of the petitions of distribution companies in addition to their detailed petitions. Since all information is in the public domain already, the Court has allowed us to go ahead with the proceedings. The public hearing will most likely be held by mid-June,” said a DERC official.
The three private power distribution companies have sought up to a 20 per cent hike in tariff to meet rising cost of power procurement. The Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL) has sought around 20 per cent increase in tariff, while BSES Yamuna Power Ltd (BYPL) and BSES Rajdhani Power Ltd (BRPL) have demanded a hike of 19 per cent and 16 per cent respectively. At the same time, the Commission is also set to hike power rates by at least five per cent owing to the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity’s (APTEL) order to pass power purchase adjustment costs (PPAC) for three quarters (July 2014 to March 2015) within three weeks.
City dwellers would, therefore, face double whammy as power tariffs in the Capital could go up anywhere between 10 to 40 per cent in the months of June, July and August.
