The Hindu Business Line : More time for installing power meters

The Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission (TNERC) has extended the time limit for installation of meters in un-metered agricultural and hut services up to March 31, 2009 following a request from the State Government.

It has asked the TNEB, which had cited the huge expenses involved in the exercise while making a case for extension of the time limit, to take advance action and provide a `metering plan with concrete milestone' before December 31, 2007.

In its order dated November 3, the TNERC pointed out that it had approved, in August 2005, TNEB's proposal to defer the metering of new agricultural — other than self-financing scheme (SFS) — and hut services, and submission of the Master Metering Plan up to June 30, 2006. The electricity board had requested the State Government in July and September this year to request the regulatory commission to grant extension of time-limit up to March 31, 2009, for fixing meters in un-metered agricultural and hut services since it involved a huge expenditure of Rs 760 crore. The TNEB said the exercise would involve metering about 9.13 lakh hut services, around 14.37 lakh free agricultural services and 1.70 lakh SFS agricultural services.

The board had argued that in view of the large quantity of meters to be fixed and the huge expenditure involved, a time of three years was required for completing the work.

The State Government, while forwarding TNEB's request for consideration by the TNERC, sought extension of time up to March 31, 2009, for installation of meters to un-metered agricultural and hut services by the TNEB.

Quarterly reports

The TNERC, accepting the request, has extended the time limit up to March 31, 2009, subject to certain conditions. It said the metering of distribution transformers (DTs) for assessing line losses etc., should be done as per TNERC's directives and the programme should be communicated to it by the TNEB. A detailed time schedule to provide 100 per cent metering of the DTs might be furnished within a month.

It also wanted TNEB to furnish quarterly reports on actual line losses in the areas where the meters were provided on DTs. It suggested that critical sample studies be conducted in different areas (taking to account the ground-water level, type of well, additional pump-set with changeover switch etc) with the help of experts to assess, more accurately, the power consumption by agricultural pump-sets. Such studies might be done to assess power consumption of the hut services also and the action taken in this regard be communicated to the regulatory commission within three months.