UPPCL to flag tariff dispute with its lone foreign consumer
UPPCL to seek arbitration at Indo-Nepal Power Exchange Committee’s 14th meeting to be held in Delhi soon
The UPPCL (UP Power Corporation Ltd) is gearing up to take the pending tariff dispute with its lone foreign consumer to the Indo-Nepal Power Exchange Committee for arbitration. The committee is scheduled to hold its 14th meeting shortly in Delhi.
The foreign consumer, in question here, is the Nepal government that has a heavy electricity connection of 5,000 kw/kva subscribed in the name of “project incharge”, Nepalganj but has power dues of more than ₹19 crore pending against it.
The UPPCL and Nepal authorities are in dispute over the charging of electricity tariff with the former insisting that it will charge tariff as per the rate revised and fixed by the UP Electricity Regulatory Commission (UPERC) while the latter is demanding the tariff be charged at the rate fixed during the agreement when it subscribed to the connection.
“We have written to the Madhyanchal Vitran Nigam Ltd (MVVNL), asking it to provide all the relevant details, including, the date when power supply agreement was signed with Nepal so that we can present our case before the Indo-Nepal Power Exchange Committee when it holds it meeting,” UPPCL chief engineer (regulatory affairs) Neeraj Agrawal said when contacted.
“We will demand recovery of pending power dues and revision or applicability of the revised electricity tariff as determined by UPERC for any consumers of a similar nature,” he added.
As per electricity the bill (for the period from November 1, 2021 to December 1, 2021) provided by the chief engineer (distribution), Faizabad (Ayodhya), to UPPCL, the foreign consumer has a bulk connected load 5,000 kw/kva but consumed only 2044 units worth ₹16,208.92, the current billing rate being ₹7.93 per unit.
The same bill showed the consumer having old arrears of ₹19,30,06,000 plus surcharge/interest of ₹38,60,120 though it paid an amount of ₹38,60,120 to MVVNL in the past.
“The Nepal government is yet to pay power dues to the tune of ₹19,30,14,578.92 to us,” a discom official said quoting the bill.
UPPCL, according to the official, was scheduled to put up the case in a meeting convened by the Union power ministry in Delhi on December 24, but could not do so because MVVNL did not provide necessary details that were required for the purpose.
“UPPCL has sought fresh details on the date of power connection issued to Nepal, month-wise details of bills provided to the consumer, the initial order issued after sanction of the connection and connected load, details provided to UPERC in this regard in the past, copies of correspondence done with regard to recovery of power dues etc,” the official said.
