State-run Damodar Valley Corporation ( DVC) is planning to foray into power distribution. DVC chairman RN Singh said, the company has firmed up plans for domestic distribution and there were proposals from the Jharkhand government for DVC to come up as a distribution licensee for supplying domestic power in the Giridih region.
The Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2022 seeks to reinforce open access by allowing consumers the right to choose their electricity provider, regardless of the controller of the physical infrastructure in a particular locality or state.
The bill placed in the parliament on August 8 have been sent to the parliamentary standing committee on energyfor review.
Singh however, hoped that bill following the standing committee’s review would be shortly cleared and DVC would move ahead with its domestic distribution plans. “Apart from 33 KV and 11 KV supplies to the industrial consumers, DVC would bring down supplies at 400 volts and 230 volts to tap domestic consumers. “We will shortly appoint a consultant to work on the niti gritty of domestic supplies ,” Singh said adding once the parliament clears the bill, DVC would strive for domestic distribution out side the valley area. DVC, Singh claimed, “provide the cheapest power across the country and consumers have the right to chose a distributor of their choice”.
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Electricity ( Amendment) Bill 2022has proposed significant changes in the power distribution sector to allow multiple distribution licensees to function in an area. The bill proposes to amend section 42 and section 14 of the Electricity( Amendment) Act of 2003 enabling competition in retail power distribution. The proposed amendments to these sections will allow the use of distribution networks by all licensees under the provisions of non discriminatory open access. The Bill has sought to amend section 62 to allow graded revision in tariff over a year and has proposed for an appropriate commission to fix the maximum ceiling and minimum tariff . An amendment to section 166 has also proposed to strengthen the regulators function.