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Mumbai , Oct. 1

TATA Power Company has asked the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission to direct BSES Ltd (now Reliance Energy Ltd) to enter a power purchase agreement with TPC, in its annual tariff proposal filed on Wednesday.

In its estimates of annual income from tariff for 2003-04 filed with the ERC - known as the annual revenue requirement (ARR) — TPC has not recommended any raise in tariff for 17,000 retail consumers or for the Railways, MSEB and BEST, its bulk consumers other than BSES.

For BSES, Tata Power has asked for a "tariff rationalisation" as it is the only bulk consumer which has not yet signed a PPA with TPC. The "rationalisation" may increase BSES' Rs 713-crore annual power purchase bill from TPC by Rs 80-85 crore.

According to TPC, BSES' average annual power purchase from its network was roughly 3,000 million units last year. But in its ARR submitted to the MERC, BSES has put its drawal at 3,800 million units. BSES had said it would have to hike its tariff for retail customers, as its power purchase costs from TPC are very high.

TPC said both these BSES figures — number of units and the estimated costs — are "overestimated". "BSES buys roughly 2,000 to 2,800 mu from TPC if its Dahanu plant runs at 90-98 per cent PLF. But the plant has been running at more than 100 per cent PLF. So they should ideally be buying less power from TPC," said a senior TPC official.

He said BSES must now openly agree upon the estimated minimum power purchases and pay a basic charge for the same.

Also, TPC has said BSES does not maintain mandatory `spinning reserves' for its 500 MW Dahanu unit, needed to absorb shocks in the State transmission system to prevent it from tripping in emergencies.

"BSES has been drawing 220 kV from TPC on a regular basis at lower rates, although this is meant to be a back-up if its Dahanu plant trips. TPC should be paid a charge for the guaranteed offtake," he said.

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