Your electricity bill will rise if you use AC, cooler at night: Atishi blames Centre’s new rule
Due to the inability of the BJP-ruled Centre to control the prices of coal and natural gas nationally, electricity bills in Delhi will see a small hike from July. However, this will not affect consumers who receive zero bills, as the burden of increased electricity bills will be borne by the Delhi government. Speaking at a press conference on this matter, Power Minister Atishi said the increase of electricity costs by the Central Govt has imposed an unfair burden on Delhi’s residents.
Due to the Central Govt’s mismanagement, the entire country is facing an artificial shortage of coal, and electricity production companies are being forced to purchase imported coal at 10x prices, resulting in an increase in electricity prices across the country, she said.
“However, I assure the people of Delhi, on behalf of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, that those families whose electricity bills amount to zero will continue to receive zero bills even after the increase in electricity rates. Even though the surcharge may increase, it will not have any impact on their bills, and the Delhi government will bear the burden of the increased electricity bills.”
Atishi stated that the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) has issued an order allowing electricity companies in Delhi to increase the power purchase adjustment charge. Regarding the Power Purchase Adjustment Charges (PPAC), she explained that the PPAC is included in the bills of all consumers, and is separate from electricity rates, which are determined once a year by the State Govt.
The PPAC is included in bills to adjust for nationwide fluctuations in the prices of coal and gas. If the prices of gas and coal increase, the PPAC increases, and if they decrease, the PPAC decreases.
As a result of this, due to the inability of the BJP-ruled Centre to control the prices of coal and natural gas nationally, electricity bills in Delhi will see a small hike from July. The bills of TPDDL consumers (29 per cent of all domestic consumers) will see a hike of 1.2 per cent between their bills of June and July, BSES Rajdhani consumers (45 per cent) will see a hike of 5.5 per cent and BSES Yamuna consumers (26 per cent) will see a hike of 7.7 per cent in their July bills. She mentioned that determination of the PPAC is a routine process of the DERC, which is undertaken every three months.
“The Central Govt’s mismanagement is singularly responsible for the rise in electricity rates, as the three electricity companies in Delhi currently purchase electricity mostly from NTPC’s thermal power plants under the Central Govt, or from gas power plants. Three out of five power plants supplying to Delhi (i.e. NTPC Aravali, Dadri 2, and MTPS-7) are owned by NTPC. Through NTPC, the Central Govt is providing electricity to Delhi’s power companies at 25 per cent to 50 per cent higher rates than those stipulated by DERC.”
She stated that the DERC-approved rate for NTPC Aravali is Rs 3.16 per kilowatt-hour, but Delhi’s power companies are receiving electricity from the same at Rs 4.50. The Dadri-2 plant’s electricity, which should be selling electricity at Rs 3.16, is being sold at a rate of Rs 4.72. Similarly, from the EMTP-7 plant, Delhi’s power companies are being charged Rs 3.48 instead of Rs 2.77.
The ultimate result of the increased electricity prices imposed by the Central Govt, is that the people of Delhi are being burdened with higher electricity bills.
Atishi slammed the Central Govt, saying this is the first time in the history of Independent India that our country is facing a coal crisis, due to the Central Govt’s recklessness. The truth is that there is no shortage of coal in the country. The shortage exists artificially, only because the central government is withholding coal production. In fact, the Central Government has issued an order stating that any state or power plant using coal should utilise a minimum of 10% of imported coal. The price of imported coal is more than 10 times higher than the coal available domestically.
The Power Minister mentioned that the price of domestic coal in the country is around Rs. 2000/tonne, while due to the Central Government’s order, thermal power plants have to use 10 per cent of imported coal, which costs Rs. 25,000/tonne. As a result of this order, the price of electricity has shot up across the country.
The Power Minister said we must ask if the Central Govt has also started colluding with coal importers, forcing power companies to purchase coal at 10 times the domestic price. If there is no shortage of coal in the country in the absence of decreased production, is this not an artificial shortage? Is this not an attempt to appease and benefit coal importers?
“For any power company, whether they belong to Delhi or the rest of the country, 80 per cent of expenses go towards purchasing electricity. If the prices of electricity increase due to the policies of the central government, the prices of electricity production by NTPC increase, and the prices of coal increase, then this will have a dire impact across India. I want to inform the Central Government that it is solely their burden to resolve the mismanagement of coal and gas prices.”
8 points from Atishi press conference
Central Govt’s mismanagement behind rise in electricity bills across Delhi and India – Atishi
CM Arvind Kejriwal’s assurance for Delhiites: Bills of consumers using less than 200 units of electricity will remain ZERO
Delhi’s consumers being forced to bear the brunt of Central Govt’s coal crisis, through a hike in Power Purchasing Adjustment Charge – Atishi
Central Govt’s NTPC selling electricity to Delhi at a massive 25-50% hike over DERC stipulated rates – Atishi
This is India’s first coal supply crisis ever, caused by the Central Government’s failure to ensure sufficient production- Atishi
If Central Govt decides to raise the cost of coal, the PPAC and the prices of NTPC power, the entire country will suffer from an electricity price hike – Atishi
Why is BJP’s Central Govt forcing power companies to purchase 10% of imported coal, which is 10x more expensive? Is BJP also colluding with Coal importers? – Atishi
Domestic coal costs INR 2,000/ton, but power companies are being forced to buy imported coal at INR 25,000/tonne, this is affecting power rates in the country – Atishi
