To enable Grid Corporation of Orissa (Gridco), the bulk supplier of power in the state to source power from the Captive Power Plants (CPPs) and the cogeneration plants, the Orissa Electricity Regulatory Commission (OERC) has come out with a new tariff order for purchase of power.
“The Commission has fixed the price for procurement of power by Gridco from the CPPs at Rs 3 per unit while the tariff for purchase of power from the cogeneration plants Like Nilachal Ispat Nigam Limited and Aarti Steel has been pegged at Rs 3.10 per unit”, said a senior official of OERC.
The power procured by Gridco from CPPs and the cogeneration plants is meant for sale to the distribution companies in the state. For procurement of surplus power meant for power trading, OERC has set an indicative rate of Rs 3.50 per unit.
However Gridco and the individual CPPs or the cogeneration plants can enter into further negotiations for an agreed price above this indicative rate on the condition that the price would not unduly vary from the indicative rate fixed by the Commission.
The price of power purchase from the CPPs and the cogeneration plants declared by OERC would be effective from March 1 this year. The tariff for power purchase was fixed by the Commission earlier this month.
OERC’s move to come out with the procurement price of power comes in response to Gridco’s plan to purchase 400-500 MW of power from the CPPs and the cogeneration plants to tide over any possible deficit of power in the state and ensure uninterrupted supply of power over the next four months.
The current peak power requirement of power in the state is 2,800-3,000 MW while the non-peak demand stands at around 2,500 MW.