MERC allows TPC-D's review in full and AEML-D's review in part on TPC-D's FY20-30 MYT Order; corrects CSS with immediate effect, defers other financial impacts to MTR true-up
Case of The Tata Power Company Limited (Distribution) seeking review of certain aspects of Multi Year Tariff (MYT) Order dated 30 March 2020 in Case No. 326 of 2019
TPC-D and AEML-D separately sought review under Section 94(1)(f) EA/Regulation 85 of MERC's MYT Order dated 30 March 2020 (Case 326/2019) for TPC-D. TPC-D flagged non-consideration of UI reconciliation, double-counting of ToD revenue in FY17-18/FY18-19, income tax computation errors, and missing CSS for EHV Public Water Works. AEML-D flagged the same UI/CSS issues plus a computational error in Transmission Charges used for CSS (only direct sales considered, excluding changeover sales), arguing this understated TPC-D's tariffs and hurt its own competitiveness for retail/OA consumers. Both petitions were filed beyond the 45-day limit but condoned citing SC's COVID-19 limitation extension order.
- TPC-D's review petition (Case 96/2020) allowed in full; AEML-D's review petition (Case 98/2020) partly allowed
- UI reconciliation amount of Rs. 31.21 Crore to be considered while computing FY2019-20 revenue surplus, at MTR true-up
- Double-counted ToD revenue (already in Energy Charges) to be excluded from FY2017-18 and FY2018-19 revenue; impact via MTR with carrying cost
- Income Tax for FY2017-18/FY2018-19 revised (removed inadvertent inclusion of RoE/Past Surplus in expenses) - revised total Income Tax Rs. 135.23 Cr (FY17-18) and Rs. 162.63 Cr (FY18-19)
- CSS recalculated using corrected per-unit Transmission Charges (including changeover sales), effective immediately from 1 April 2020; TPC-D's counter-request to include AEML-D's distribution losses in the CSS formula rejected
- Separate CSS for EHV-Public Water Works rejected (category merged into 'Public Service-Others'); double allowance of FBSM expenses of Rs. 257.94 Cr in FY2020-21 (already provisionally allowed Rs. 166.33 Cr + Rs. 82.19 Cr in FY18-19/FY19-20) held erroneous - correction to be claimed at MTR; AEML-D's demand for immediate tariff pass-through of all review impacts rejected
- TPC-D to claim consequential impact of UI, ToD-revenue correction, Income Tax revision and FBSM double-allowance correction, along with carrying/holding cost, in the upcoming Mid Term Review (MTR) proceedings (2022)
- Revised CSS (Tables 6-41 to 6-43) to apply immediately from 1 April 2020 for all TPC-D consumer categories including newly determined EHV-Public Service CSS
- TPC-D to true-up FY2019-20 UI reconciliation figure as part of MTR since FY2019-20 accounts are not yet finalized
- Office of the Commission directed to exercise additional vigilance in scrutinizing tariff petitions/financial models to avoid similar Excel linkage/computational errors
- No immediate/mid-year tariff revision beyond the CSS correction, consistent with Section 62(4) EA bar on more-than-once-a-year tariff revision
- • OA and changeover consumers of TPC-D see revised (generally higher) CSS effective retroactively from 1 April 2020 across EHV/HT/LT categories, directly affecting open-access cost-benefit calculations
- • AEML-D's competitiveness argument was accepted only for the CSS fix; other ARR-level corrections (UI, ToD, tax, FBSM) are deferred to MTR, so near-term retail tariff differentials between TPC-D and AEML-D remain largely unchanged
- • EHV Public Water Works consumers now fall under 'EHV-Public Service (Others)' category for CSS purposes; developers/large consumers in this category should use the newly notified CSS rates
- • C&I open-access users on TPC-D network should re-verify landed OA cost using the corrected (lower) transmission-charge-linked CSS table rather than the original 30 March 2020 MYT figures
This is largely a technical correction order clarifying computational errors rather than a policy shift. The immediate, retroactive CSS correction (effective 1 April 2020) is the only actionable item for OA/C&I consumers today - developers should re-run OA economics using revised Rs./kWh CSS values. Other financial reliefs are deferred to MTR 2022, meaning no near-term tariff movement for retail/BST rates. The order also signals MERC's growing scrutiny of Excel-model errors in competing discom tariff filings, useful context for future TPC-D/AEML-D tariff disputes.
Growthifye does not take responsibility for the accuracy of this information. Values are compiled from tariff orders published on the websites of State Electricity Regulatory Commissions and distribution licensees (plus CEA / MoP / Grid-India), parsed automatically and shown with their source. Always verify against the signed order before any commercial decision. This one-pager is a Vidura-assisted summary of the official order; the signed order prevails.