Owe no dues to power gencos, says TN

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu on Friday said it owed no dues to power generators and insisted there was no mechanism in an online portal of the Union government for this purpose to share the state's response on the matter.

Power System Operation Corporation (POSOCO) Limited on Thursday asked three power exchanges -- IEX, PXIL and HPX -- to restrict electricity trading by 27 distribution companies in 13 states, including Tamil Nadu, having outstanding dues towards generating companies (gencos).

State Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji said the Union Power Ministry's stipulated monthly dues of Rs 361 crore has already been paid on August 4, 2022.

Centre's ''PRAAPTI Portal'' has provision for the gencos to list their dues but does not give the state-run Tamil Nadu Electricity Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO) to provide its response.

''It is not fair to unilaterally stop supply of power without providing an opportunity and time to respond to a controversial list,'' he said in a statement uploaded on Twitter.

A small amount is due for some wind and solar power gencos but ''even that will be settled in a day or two,'' Balaji said.