In an election year, KSEB (Kerala State Electricity Board) is pushed to a predicament of an inevitable power tariff hike. Unallocated share of power from central pool has became costlier by Rs 7.50 per unit this month, after winter mornings jacked up power consumption in North Indian states.
Like most SEBs, KSEB, with a Rs 755-crore revenue gap (current year?s projection), is too fragile to shoulder the jump in power purchase costs. Following weak monsoon at catchment areas, the board had been forced to drop its preference for hydel power(costing just 85 paise per unit) and resort to buy thermal power.
Unlike Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, Kerala is not investing in cloudseeding to end the dry spell. Its no longer affordable to tap unallocated shares (for states from central grid) at Rs 18.5 per unit and sell it to consumer at a price of Rs 1.5 to Rs 3 per unit, a senior KSEB official told FE. To aggravate matters, Kerala?s allotment from central grid had been trimmed from 1,041 mw to 600-700 mw recently.
From May 20 to July 17, the board had spent an additional Rs 450 crore, because of shortage in hydel power. After unallocated shares became costly, the bill is likely to double.
It is through Tata Power, NTPC and Power Exchange that KSEB is making good its power deficit. Last fortnight from Himachal Pradesh alone, KSEB had to wheel in 80 mw.
Kerala needs 2,700 mw per day. At present, it has 2,528 mw available per day, with just 1,851 mw per day drawn from its 24 hydro power projects. Even with 30 minutes load-shedding at the peak hours, the Board is running about 25% short of the overall demand in the domestic sector.
In its turn, KSEB has decided to go easy on its own spending. Postings to key chairs, even those for its Rs 2,500-crore transmission and distribution project, has been put on the backburner. In a visible signal of austerity, senior officials have been told to keep air conditioners off.
State Electricity Tariff Regulatory Commission is yet to decide on KSEB?s plea to slap thermal surcharge. (The proposed extra rates are 50 ps per unit for those using 81 to 300 units and Rs 1 per unit for those using above 300 units) on consumers. After public hearings, the Commission?s preference is understood to be to moot daytime loadshedding. But election-year or not, KSEB fearing to bleed a liability of about Rs 2,548 crore this fiscal, is unlikely to be sated without a thumbs up for tariff hike.