Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation Ltd (Tangedco) has filed a petition before the Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission (TNERC) seeking approval for levying excess demand and energy charges on High Tension (HT), Low Tension (LT) and LT Current Transformer (LTCT) industrial services consumers who are not complying with the revised restriction and control (R and C) measures.
The R and C additional measures petition dated April 9 also seeks to ratify power holiday introduced by Tangedco with effect from March 1, besides additional measures, including restricting HT consumers from purchasing third-party or exchange power, wind mill and captive power plant during power holidays and load shedding imposed by it on February 29.
The state is facing a power shortage of 3,000 MW to 4,000 MW and in this backdrop Tangedco has announced a host of R and C measures, including load shedding, power holidays and peak-hour restriction for HT, LT and LCTC units.
However, the R and C measures failed to yield the desired results as the HT, LTCT and LT consumers continued to draw power from the grid even during power holidays and load shedding.
In the petition, Tangedco said that the R and C measures are warranted to operate the grid in a secure manner and with utmost safety.
“If the measures are to be sincerely adhered to and desired relief achieved, a suitable enforcement mechanism is considered necessary,” the petition said.
It added that the commission should consider enforcing penal measures by exercising its power under Section 23 of the Electricity Act 2003, which governs restrictions and controls on electricity distribution.
Besides imposition of the excess demand and energy charges on HT, LTCT and LT industrial services who violate power holiday, Tangedco, in its petition, urged that HT open access consumers be discouraged from drawing more than legitimate quantum entitled for them and proposed to levy penalty in the form of suspension of Open Access (OA) for a period of three days, a practice adopted by other utilities such as those in Punjab.
The petition said if HT consumers availing power from captive power plants consumed more than the generated quantum or consumed without generation, the CPP power would be suspended for 72 hours and penal charges will be levied.