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Our Bureau

Chennai, Nov. 9 Private power producers in Tamil Nadu can now sell the surplus electricity they generate directly to a consumer, instead of only to the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board.

The State Government took a decision to this effect on Friday, fulfilling a long-pending demand of industry.

Hitherto, power producers could only sell the electricity they generate to the electricity board even though the Electricity Act, 2003 allowed for open access — that is, throwing open the transmission infrastructure to enable third-party sale of electricity on payment of wheeling charges.

The Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission had also framed rules as required under the Act allowing open access. The Government decision is meant to reduce industry’s dependence on the State grid as it can now source the surplus electricity from those private generators.

Apart from paying the wheeling charges for using the transmission network, the private power producers need not pay any cross subsidy charges, according to an official press release.

The release said that the cross subsidy charges were being waived till the power situation improves in the State. Industrial consumers could now directly buy the power they require from generators.

The Government also decided that expenditure incurred on setting up captive power plants would be included in the total capital expenditure incurred by companies for calculating the incentives that they were eligible for.

It also decided to offer a 25 per cent subsidy up to a maximum of Rs 1.50 lakh for small-scale industries to buy generator sets up to 125 kVa capacity.

The Government said it would continue to support private investment in power generation and the TNEB would create the transmission infrastructure needed to evacuate the power generated by these plants.

More Stories on : Power | Industrial Policy | Tamil Nadu

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