The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) has allowed power companies to claim compensation for the additional cost of coal procured from alternative sources due to Coal India’s failure to meet supply obligations. While such compensation facility was available for the FY14-FY17 period under a modified coal distribution policy, it has since ceased to be in operation.
The industry estimates accumulated ‘receivables’ to power companies on account of this stalemate at around `17,000 crore.
GMR Energy, which filed the petition claiming pass-through of extra fuel cost before the regulator, will be the immediate beneficiary of the CERC decision. The latest regulatory order, invoking the ‘change in law’ clause in the Electricity Act, virtually entitles a clutch of other plants including those of Jindal Steel and Power, Reliance Power, Rattan India, CESC and KSK Group to similar reliefs.
