Damodar Valley Corpn allowed to snap CESC power supply

Our Corporate Bureau

Kolkata, Jan 3: The Calcutta high court has allowed Damodar Valley Corp to stop power supplies to private power utility CESC Ltd for its failure to clear power bills of Rs 66.07 crore. The order was passed by the high court on December 24, 2001.

DVC, however, has decided to "regulate" power supplies by cutting off supplies for four hours daily for a week beginning January 5. The situation will be reviewed after CESC clears a part of the dues, DVC said in a statement.

DVC said the high court, in its first order on December 21, had directed CESC to pay Rs 8 crore as an interim measure by December 24. Failing this, an injunction against DVC will be vacated automatically, the court had said.

CESC’s spokesman was not available for comment on the order. Contacted for another report shortly before the DVC release, the spokesman had said he will not be available before Saturday.

Earlier too, the high court had passed orders from time to time directing CESC to clear the arrears through instalments within a certain time frame. The release says that CESC "kept on defaulting payment of full amount of instalments in November and December, 2001".

During fiscal 2000-01, CESC purchased 181 million units from DVC, while consultants appointed by the West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission had recommended purchase of 123mu from it.

The WBERC, in its recent order on CESC’s tariff, said it accepted that CESC’s power purchase cost from DVC of Rs 51.05 crore.

CESC, in its petition to the WBERC, had sought permission to hit its customers for the Rs 18.12 crore that it owed DVC. This claim related to a period before April 2000.

The WBERC disallowed this, noting that there was no approval from the government for including such claims in the revised tariff rates. CESC also owes the West Bengal State Electricity Board money for power purchases, on which the board had sought a delayed payment surcharge. CESC’s petition to the WBERC had cited its financial crunch for its failure to clear the dues of the SEB, DVC and the government’s electricity duty.

However, in its latest annual report, CESC has noted that it disputes a number of claims raised by DVC and hence does not admit them.

The WBERC had said CESC should not pass on the cost of the delayed payment surcharge to its consumers, since timely payment is CESC’s business.