Maharashtra: Will Power Companies Hike Its Tariff In Coming Days?

As the state did not receive enough coal supply amid rising demand owing to heatwave, the Maharashtra Energy Minister Nitin Raut has warned of crucial days ahead.

On Wednesday, March 30, Raut said that the next two days are crucial for the state. However, the government is trying to avoid a situation wherein it has to impose load shedding by exploring possibilities to increase the coal availability.

This also comes at a time when reports are rife that the electricity tariffs in Mumbai might see a hike in the coming days. For this, power companies are making an effort to take permissions from Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) citing valid reasons for the hike.

While talking to reporters, the minister said that the coal supply in the last two days has been very low, which is creating a challenge before the state power generation company to meet the growing demand for electricity. If there is not enough coal supply, the state would be affected.

Hence, there is a high possibility that the power distribution companies of Adani Electricity Mumbai Limited (AEML), Tata Power Corporation (TPC) and Brihanmumbai Electrical Supply and Transport (BEST) would rally behind a tariff hike owing to the coal shortage and expensive procurement. If sources are to be believed, then the hike proposed by the power companies could be anywhere between 25-50 paise per unit.

Raut shared that the government has been buying electricity between INR 3 to INR 8 per unit. Though last year, the state had to buy it at INR 20 per unit. The current procurement of power ranges between 1,500 MW to 2,500 MW per day.

According to a data shared by the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL), till January this year, its total dues were INR 64,093 crores, of which INR 9,176 crores are from various governments alone.

On the other hand, it has come to light that ever since the war began between Russia and Ukraine, the supply of oil, gas, coal and many products used as raw materials are apparently getting expensive.