The Hindu : Front Page : KSEB projects Rs.754.69-crore deficit

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Sunday, Jan 13, 2008
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KSEB projects Rs.754.69-crore deficit

P. Venugopal

Kerala State Electricity Regulatory Commission to decide on tariff revision

Commission to conduct public hearing
Board to find ways to bridge revenue gap

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) has submitted before the Kerala State Electricity Regulatory Commission that its operations at the existing power tariff structure will leave it with a revenue deficit of Rs. 754.69 crore in 2008-09.

Should the commission accept this submission, it will mean a traffic revision next year, unless the State government comes to the help of the Board with subsidy to bridge the gap.

The commission will go through several procedures, including public hearings on the Board’s detailed statement of revenue requirements, before giving its order on the submission. The procedures normally take a few months.

In its submission last week, the Board said it was reserving its proposal for bridging the revenue gap till the government took a policy decision on how to do it. “The Board is separately writing to the government proposing/seeking ways to bridge the revenue gap,” the submission said.

In last year’s submission (covering the estimates for the current financial year), the Board indicated a revenue deficit of Rs. 430.11 crore. The commission, after subjecting it to scrutiny and placing it for public hearings, then rejected the deficit claim. Only minor revisions (upward in a few categories of power consumers and downward in certain other categories) in the tariff structure were made by the commission in its tariff order for 2007-08. The good monsoon received this year helped brighten the Board’s finances during the current financial year, ruling out the need for steep tariff increases.

The Board’s latest submission to the commission expects its aggregate revenue requirement to reach Rs. 5,734.03 crore in 2008-09. Total income from tariffs, non-tariff sources and sale of surplus energy is estimated to reach Rs. 4,979.34 crore, thereby leaving it with a revenue deficit of Rs.754.69 crore.

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