MUMBAI: Even as the rest of the world is embracing green electricity with open arms, over 500 windmills in Maharashtra are on shaky ground as an over 10-month-long standoff between private wind mill owners and the state government over tariffs remains unresolved.
If things are not sorted soon, the state risks losing 800 MW clean energy with producers looking at diverting it outside the state. They are even threatening to stop generating the green power.
State power distributor Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Ltd (MSEDCL) has capped the tariff at Rs 2.52 per unit. But the Green Energy Association (GEA), which represents the producers, is demanding an average pool power tariff of Rs 3.52.
The GEA’s contention is that the tariff is unviable. Producers say new turbines with advanced technology have high power generating capacity and can afford lower tariffs. If old wind mills are to be repowered with advanced turbines and blades, they need a policy in place. The 500 wind turbines in the state were installed 14 years ago at an investment of Rs 5,000 crore. MSEDCL is unwilling to soften its stance, terming the demands highly unfair. Authorities say power consumers in the state have already paid over Rs 5.70 per unit to the wind power generators for 13 years, thus helping them recover capital costs. “In fact they should now offer the lowest best. When the prevailing market rate of wind power is Rs 2.60 per unit, why should consumers in Maharashtra pay Rs 3.52 per unit?,” said a top MSEDCL official. If they want, generators can increase the capacity of their old windmills, he added.
Producers, however, say Rajasthan has continued to offer attractive rates even after expiry of power purchase agreements.
The GEA, in its letter to the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC), has also opposed amendments in the MERC Act, stating they have brought in stringent open access conditions, besides heavy surcharges. They say relaxing these conditions for older projects is the only way to facilitate easy and sustained generation to make the businesses viable in the longer run.
The Centre has set higher renewable energy generation/purchase obligations (RPO) for states next year. RPO is the obligation of power utilities and captive power producers to buy a certain percentage of renewable energy out of their total consumption.
It remains to be seen how Maharashtra will achieve its target given that the growth of renewable energy in the state has been the lowest in the last three fiscals as compared to states like Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. While these states have witnessed an annual growth in green power of minimum 4.5% to maximum 43.5%, in Maharashtra it has been miniscule 0.4% to maximum 2.1%.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes
