UP power corporation seeks change in tariff slabs to get more revenue
UP State Electricity Consumer Council has opposed the corporation's proposal, arguing that the demand for change in slabs was an attempt to hike tariff through the backdoor.
The UP Power Corporation Ltd (UPPCL) has sought, yet again, reorganisation of existing power tariff slabs applicable to consumers under various categories in a bid that may make power usage costlier for some categories and bring more revenue to the corporation without any direct tariff increase.
The annual revenue requirement (ARR) proposal (for 2021-22) submitted by the corporation to UP Electricity Regulatory Commission (UPERC) has proposed revision of the current tariff structure that would remove or merge some tariff categories and create some fresh slabs if the regulator accepts the proposal.
“The UPPCL has filed the ARR with a proposal for changes in current tariff slabs much like the proposal it filed last year and we rejected the same,” a senior official at UP’s power regulator said, adding “We will now examine the ARR before we admit it for consideration.”
Last year, the UPPCL had sought a reduction in subcategories/slabs under consumer categories LMV-1 (domestic) LMV-2 (commercial), LMV-3 (public lamps), LMV-4 (institutions), LMV-6(small and medium industries) LMV-9 (temporary supply), HV-1 (non-industrial bulk load) and HV-3(heavy industries).
It also proposed an increase in the number of sub-categories under the category LMV-7 (public waterworks) and sought deletion of the entire category LMV-8 (state tube wells) proposing its merger in the category LMV-7. “The proposal is, by and large, on the same lines this year,” the official said.
Opposing the proposal, UP Rajya Vidyut Upbhokta Parishad chairman Avadhesh Kumar Verma on Tuesday filed a petition in the UPERC urging it to reject the UPPCL’s entire ARR which he claimed was based on imaginary figures. “The proposal for change in the consumer categorization is an attempt to get tariff increase through the backdoor,” he alleged.
The ARR has put the UPPCL’s total revenue requirement during 2021-22 at ₹81,901 crore that also included an estimated expenditure of ₹62,020 crore on the purchase of 1,20,043 million units (MUs) of electricity during the year.
The UPPCL has forecast the distribution losses to 16.64% for 2021-22 against the 11.08% approved by the UPERC in its last tariff order.