The Union power ministry plans to form a single regulatory commission for a uniform tariff for consumers in the distribution areas of Damodar Valley Corporation (DMC) in West Bengal and Jharkhand, respectively.

S Suresh Kumar, chairman of the DVC, while addressing a seminar, ‘Opportunities & Challenges for DVC-the Way Forward’, organized by the Merchants’ Chamber of Commerce & Industry (MCCI) in the city today, said, “The power ministry is working on how to form a single regulatory commission to prepare a uniform tariff for consumers under DVC areas in West Bengal and Jharkhand respectively.”

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Both states have their separate regulatory commissions – West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission (WBERC) and Jharkhand State Electricity Regulatory Commission (JSERC).

“Both commissions are issuing orders separately making consumers confused in terms of electricity tariffs. The two commissions never sit together to get the confusions solved. There are 200 industry-based consumers in West Bengal while the figure is 150 for Jharkhand. The ministry is exploring legal aspects and other issues for the past several months on how to form a single regulatory commission. The move has been put on hold till the general elections are over in the first week of June,” Mr Kumar said.

Mr Kumar has also outlined several expansion opportunities like renewable energy (RE) of 5929 MW and diversification, including green hydrogen distribution system of DVC in coming years.

For instance, the DVC chief said, “In alignment with the global shift towards sustainable practices, the corporation is poised to harness the potential of RE sources such as solar PV projects. Our ongoing and forthcoming projects in ground and floating solar PV plants exemplify our commitment to reducing our carbon footprint and meeting government-mandated RE targets.”

According to him, the total identified floating solar PV potential in the DVC area is about 2000 MW.

Nine hundred MW solar PV parks in DVC command area has already been approved under UMREPPs scheme of MNRE.

DVC has formed a JV with NTPC Green Energy Ltd to develop RE parks and projects in command area. Around 310 MW projects are under execution.

More than 500 MW capacity solar tenders are planned in financial year 2025. The DVC is also exploring investments in energy storage solutions like pumped hydro storage to ensure grid stability and mitigate the intermittent issues associated with RE sources, he added.

Devendra Goel, chairman, Council on Industry, power and RE of MCCI while speaking in the programme also stressed the need for a uniform tariff in West Bengal and Jharkhand.

He also alleged that West Bengal government is charging high for fuel and power purchase cost.

Namit Bajoria, president of MCCI, also demanded a uniform power tariff in the two states. “Industries in West Bengal are constrained by high power tariffs,” Mr Bajoria alleged.