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Power regulatory commission studies ‘thermal surcharge’ plea

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala Electricity Regulatory Commission on Saturday started examining whether it can permit the thermal surcharge concept brought by the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) to get over the difficulties caused by a poor monsoon.

The commission held the first of its public hearings on the KSEB’s plea here on Saturday. Another hearing is scheduled in Kochi on Monday. The commission is likely to come out with its order immediately after the hearing in Kochi. The KSEB’s argument is that the poor monsoon and a drastic cut in Central allocation of power would force it to go out of the budget this year to buy costly energy from naphtha and diesel power stations.

Giving a detailed workout of the data involved, its Finance Member Mathew George said the additional financial burden would come to Rs.2,548.48 crore, even with the supply restrictions already in force. The KSEB wants to pass on Rs.1,078.20 crore of the total burden to the consumers as a temporary thermal surcharge and retain the remaining Rs.1,470.28 crore in the records as a ‘regulatory asset’ (to be bridged through borrowings, perhaps).

This ‘regulatory asset’ can then be recovered from the consumers in the subsequent years through tariff adjustments.

Poor domestic consumers drawing up to 40 units of electricity a month, farmers, orphanages and similar institutions for the needy are to be exempted.

For other domestic consumers, it is 50 paise a unit for those drawing between 41 and 80 units a month and Re.1 a unit for those drawing between 81 and 300 units.

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