'Costly' power pacts saddle UP discoms with losses

This could be a major problem for debt-ridden discoms as the new govt has promised 24-hour supply

Losses of electricity distribution companies (discoms) in Uttar Pradesh — already among the highest loss-making utilities in the country — are mounting, owing to an unusually high cost of power procurement.

While the average power price in India (including short-term market) has gone below Rs 3 per unit, UP continues to source it at higher rates, thanks to the long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) signed for 5,056 Mw at Rs 3.2-5 per unit in 2015.

Major power plants from which the state sources electricity are Harduaganj (Rs 5.1/unit), Bajaj Hindustan (4.71/unit), Hindustan Power (Rs 4.7/unit) and Rosa (Reliance Power) (4.33/unit).