The Hindu Business Line : Inquiry report on NHPC equipment supply contract soon

A THREE-MEMBER inquiry committee looking into the ongoing controversy surrounding the award of an equipment supply contract by National Hydroelectric Power Corporation to French company Alstom, instead of public sector BHEL, is expected to submit its report on the issue shortly.

"We have not received the report of the committee. We expect it within a week," the Power Secretary, Mr R. V. Shahi, said on the sidelines of a conference here.

The inquiry committee, which is headed by the Central Electricity Authority Chairman, Mr H. L. Bajaj, was expected to submit its report by March first week.

The Chairman and Managing Director of NHPC, Mr Yogendra Prasad, said that the utility has not yet signed the contract with Alstom as it was awaiting the submission of the report.

NHPC officials had earlier said there were "arithmetical errors" in the bid submitted by BHEL for the electro-mechanical package of the 2,000 MW Subansiri hydroelectric project in Arunachal Pradesh.

Speaking on the sidelines of the conference, Mr Shahi also said the Power Ministry was targeting to finalise the National Tariff Policy within the next one month.

"We have revised the draft Tariff Policy and will send the revised draft to State Governments and other stakeholders for their comments within a week. We expect to finalise the Policy by March 31," he said. The final Tariff Policy would then be sent for Cabinet approval, he added.

The policy is expected to put in place a system to follow a consistent approach in all States to formulate electricity tariffs. It is also likely to include guidelines for State Electricity Regulatory Commissions to fix power tariffs only according to the norms issued by the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission.

Besides Electricity Policy and Tariff Policy, Government is mandated to frame the National Electricity Plan, Rural Electrification Policy and Policy for stand-alone distribution system under the Electricity Act, 2003.

The Power Ministry had notified the Electricity Policy and competitive bidding guidelines for procurement of power in February, after receiving Cabinet clearance.

The Central Electricity Authority is also expected to finalise shortly the National Electricity Plan, which would include a long-term perspective plan of the demand and supply situation of power during Eleventh and the Twelfth Five Year Plan periods.

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