Damodar Valley Corporation hopes that a uniform tariff for its consumers could be the solution to its unique problem of two separate consumer tariffs in two different states.
The DVC command area is spread over Jharkhand and Bengal with both states as stakeholders in the corporation. Being an integrated utility, DVC generates, transmits and distributes power in the area under its jurisdiction.
However, the tariffs at the discom end are being set by the state electricity regulators in Jharkhand and Bengal, respectively, and these are not identical for the end consumers. As a result an industrial unit located in Jharkhand is often getting power at lower tariffs from DVC compared with that of Bengal.
Data on tariff available with the state electricity commissions show that the energy charges for high tension and low tension consumers in Jharkhand are in the range of Rs 3.60-4.25 per kWh (kilo watt hour) in 2023-24, whereas the average tariff for consumers in the Bengal area in 2023-24 is Rs 5.08 per kWh.
As a result of this difference, industries in Bengal are unable to compete with those in Jharkhand because of high cost of production. Ferro alloys is a major industry that is affected by the tariff differential. There is also a significant amount of litigation as a result of the tariff difference.
The issue is under discussion at the power ministry level and DVC officials hope that a solution is found soon.
“What we need is one tariff order for the entire DVC area,” DVC chairman S. Suresh Kumar said on Wednesday at a Merchants’ Chamber of Commerce-organised event.
He added that a uniform tariff could solve problems that the power utility faces while billing its consumers.