CERC shortlists Deloitte, Poyry for power exchanges' audit

The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) has shortlisted two entities, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu and Norway's Poyry Consulting, for auditing the price discovery mechanism being used at the two power exchanges in the country.

Infosys as well as Tata Consultancy Services with IIT Mumbai were also in the race. However, they did not clear the stage of technical evaluation of bids.

Global consultancy Deloitte and Norwegian firm Poyry are the "technically qualified bidders" for the financial bid evaluation stage, according to CERC.

The successful bidder would audit the trading software algorithm used for price discovery by the two power exchanges -- Indian Energy Exchange and Power Exchange India.

A senior CERC official said the final bidder is likely to be decided by next week.

As per a document on CERC website, the opening of financial bids was slated for June 16. However, it could not be immediately ascertained whether bids were submitted yesterday.

Power exchanges help in discovering the price of power based on the principle of demand and supply.

At these bourses, utilities and other electricity providers offer to sell a specific quantity of energy at a particular price while potential purchasers submit their bids.

The audit would look at whether market rules and regulations are being adhered to in the price discovery process.