Power producers in a fix as piling dues from discoms choke their cash flows

By October 2018-end, accumulated dues had climbed to almost Rs 39,000 cr, leaving generators such as NTPC, Adani Power and Tata Power in distress

Power producers are in a bind over swelling dues owed by the electricity distribution companies (discoms). By the end of October 2018, the accumulated dues had climbed to Rs 38,904.47 crore, leaving the power generators in distress.

Irked over the delay by the unresponsive discoms, NTPC recently sent notices to discoms in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka over pending dues after the discoms failed to honour their assurances to clear the backlog soon. The pendency in the three states is in upwards of Rs 4,000 crore with the delay running into over 60 days. However, NTPC has decided against regulating