TN seeks PM's help for long-term access to power suppliers

CM Jayalalithaa also urges Modi to direct the Ministry of Power and PGCIL to review the transmission reliability margin

Tamil Nadu chief minister has sought Prime Minister’s intervention in the long-term access application of power suppliers of the state in connection with the 3,300-Mw long-term power purchase, which is pending with the Centre since November 2013.

J Jayalalithaa has urged the PM to direct the Union Ministry of Power and Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL) to consider the long term access application without taking into account the temporary allocation of surrendered power. She also has asked the ministry and PGCIL to review the transmission reliability margin so that Tamil Nadu gets its rightful share of long-term access.

In a letter, she urged for the PM’s “urgent” intervention in the matter of allocation of transmission capacity by the PGCIL to enable power transmission from the western and eastern states to Tamil Nadu, for which a 15-year power purchase agreement (PPAs) had been signed between the private power producers and the Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation Ltd.

She noted that based on the advice of the Ministry of Power to go in for long-term power purchase to meet the demand-supply gap, Tangedco had signed such agreements for 15 years commencing from 2014 for a total 3,330-Mw. Of this, 2,158-Mw was contracted from private power producers outside the south region. These suppliers have applied for Long Term Access from November, 2013, to January, 2014, to the PGCIL, the designated central transmission utility.

350-Mw flowing despite a transferable  1,100-Mw
While the Sholapur to Raichur inter-regional transmission lines with 4,000-Mw capacity has been commissioned, enabling power flow from western to southern region, a total transfer capability of 1,100-Mw and available transfer capability of 350 Mw only has been declared by PGCIL for the present after considering a high transmission reliability margin of 750 Mw.  This implied that only 350 Mw can flow to the southern region now, she added.

When the applications for Long Term Access from the long-term power suppliers of the Tangedco were pending with the PGCIL since November 2013, the ministry has allocated an additional 37-Mw of surrendered power of the Delhi government to AP, Telangana and Kerala over and above the present allocation of 316-Mw to these states up to March 2015.

“This would adversely affect availing of transmission capacity under the long-term access by Tamil Nadu as even temporary allocation of power from central generating stations (CGS) is considered equivalent to long term power for allocation of transmission capacity,” she said, and added this temporary allocation of power by the ministry should not curtail the long-term access entitlement of Tamil Nadu. Further, fixing high transmission reliability margin of 750-Mw requires review and reconsideration.

She asked the PM to advise the power ministry and the PGCIL to consider the long-term access application of power suppliers to Tamil Nadu without taking into account the temporary allocation of surrendered power of 693-Mw to some of the southern states. “The power ministry and PGCIL may be also be directed to review the transmission reliability margin so that Tamil Nadu can get its rightful share of access,” she listed in her letter.

The present demand of power in the state is 13,000-13,500-Mw and this is expected to touch 14,500-Mw by the end of current fiscal. The installed capacity of conventional energy sources of Tangedco is 11,884-Mw as on March 31, 2014.

Under medium-term power purchase, 500-Mw of power was being procured from June 2013. PPA have been signed to procure 3,330-Mw under-long term for 15 years from 2014-15. Of this, 224-Mw is being availed.While 1500-Mw of power would be flowing from August 2014, the balance would be available from 2015-16.