CERC declines to announce Raigarh- Pugalur-Thrissur line as national asset

CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation’s long pending demand for declaring the 6,000 MW Raigarh-Pugalur-Thrissur HVDC transmission line as a national and strategic transmission system of national importance has been declined by the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission.

In its order dated September 29, CERC stated that they are of the view that the Commission is not the appropriate forum for declaring any transmission asset to be of national and strategic importance. “It is further observed that a transmission system being of national importance and a transmission system considered as a National Component are two different aspects. Therefore, we are not inclined to approve the 100 per cent yearly transmission charges of the Raigarh-Pugalur-Thrissur HVDC system under the National Component,” it said.

Addressing a conference of Power and Renewable Energy Ministers of states and union territories on Saturday, Electricity Minister V Senthilbalaji complained that based on the request of the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu to the Prime Minister, a direction was issued by the Ministry of Power (MoP) to the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission to consider the Raigarh-Pugalur-Thrissur HVDC system as a national asset and charges to be shared by all the states across the country. “However, without considering the recommendations of the MoP and contrary to their own directions in declaring the Mundra-Mohindergarh HVDC system and Biswanath Chariali-Agra HVDC system as national assets, the CERC declined to declare it as a national asset,” he said.

In order to avoid imposing of huge tariff burden on consumers, he demanded the Union government to issue fresh directions to CERC to include the Raigarh-Pugalur-Thrissur HVDC under National components on par with the other two corridors.

A senior Tangedco official said that the HVDC project was proposed in 2014 to import power to the southern region as it was facing a huge power deficit. “With the Southern Region becoming power surplus, the transmission line could be used to export 3,000 MW of renewable energy to the Western Region. Since this corridor is going to be used for the export of renewable power from the southern region to the rest of the country, it is requested that the Raigarh-Pugalur-Thrissur HVDC transmission corridor may be declared as strategic and of national importance,” the official said.

If the project was declared as part of the national component, the cost of the project would be shared by all the states and it would bring down the transmission charges collected from the southern states, the official said, adding if not declared, it would create a financial burden on the Southern states.