We are pleased to share with you some of our recent work ranging over
issues such as 'compensatory tariff', 'surplus' power, integration of
renewable energy, and auction of coal mines for commercial mining.
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On 11th April
2017, the Supreme Court of India delivered a landmark judgement on the
appeals relating to crucial matters of ‘compensatory tariff’ granted by
Central Electricity Regulatory Commission. The judgement holds
important implications and lessons for vital issues such as sanctity of
contracts, strengthening competition, distribution company finances,
generation capacity addition, regulatory governance, public policy, and
consumer interest. Read More
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With
significant capacity addition in the past decade, many states in India
have transitioned from having chronic power shortages to having
sustained power surplus. The growing volume of surplus capacity in
various states is a matter of concern as it implies rising fixed-cost
payments for the non-requisitioned or backed down power. This report
analyses the "surplus" power situation in the country, its
causes, implications and possible solutions. Read More
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PEG made a submission questioning the
need for extending the PPA between RInfra-G and RInfra-D for 500 MW
from Dahanu TPS till 2036. Long term, cost-plus contract for thermal
power at a time when renewable energy prices are falling, and consumer
demand is uncertain may not be the most efficient choice. Moreover,
like many other DISCOMs, RInfra-D should also undertake competitive
bidding to discover favourable and competitive tariffs. To meet power
requirement in the interim, PEG proposed an arrangement which allows
RInfra-D to continue the existing cost-plus PPA with RInfra-G for the
next three years, i.e. till the end of the current MYT period. Read More
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The Solar
Energy Corporation of India recently discovered a price of Rs 3.46/kWh
for 1000 MW of wind power through the competitive bidding route. Buoyed
by this success, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has released
draft competitive bidding guidelines for procuring wind power under
section 63 of the Electricity Act, 2003. In response to these
guidelines, Prayas (Energy Group) has sent in few comments and
suggestions detailed in the submission below. Read More
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The recent
price bids for utility scale solar PV (Rs 3.3/kWh) and wind power (Rs
3.46/kWh) show that generation price of renewable energy should no
longer be a concern while aiming at high shares of renewable energy in
the future electricity mix. However this does not automatically mean
that renewables will rule in the days to come. The renewable energy
sector will increasingly have to confront the mainstream sectoral
challenges. An opinion piece describing some of these challenges and
potential ways to start addressing them was published in DNA on 11th
March 2017. Read More
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The Ministry
of Coal sought comments on the discussion paper on auction of coal
mines for commercial mining vide notice 13011/1/2017-CBA2 dated March
27, 2017. The approach towards introducing commercial mining should be
seen in the larger context of the coal and energy sector. PEG's
comments and suggestions on the matter are provided in this spirit. Read More
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Following the
2014 Supreme Court judgement cancelling allocations of 204 coal blocks,
the Government of India had promulgated the Coal Mines (Special
Provisions) Act in March 2015 and also allocated over 60 coal blocks
for captive use in various sectors. The Government hoped to achieve a
few important objectives through the allocation process. Two years
after the bulk of allocations, have these objectives been realized? A
short note and article review the status of the allocated
blocks and conclude that the objectives have not been realized. Read More
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The Ministry
of Coal published Draft Rules to replace the Auction by Competitive
Bidding of Coal Mines Rules, 2012 and invited comments and suggestions
on the same. Prayas reviewed the Draft Rules and submitted its comments
and suggestions to the Ministry. Read More
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A full-day
event "Reflections on contemporary issues in the electricity
sector", was organised in Delhi. It consisted of three sessions,
with each session focusing on one recent publication from Prayas. The
event was well attended with each session having participants from
across a wide spectrum consisting of regulators, senior bureaucrats,
utility representatives, trade union representatives, civil society
organisations, consultants, energy and environment researchers and
think tanks. Read More
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