Peak hour charges: MSMEs to down shutters tomorrow

COIMBATORE: The Micro, Small and Medium scale Enterprises (MSMEs) have announced they will stop production on Thursday in Tamil Nadu demanding the withdrawal of peak hour electricity charges. More than 25,000 small and tiny industrial units in the state will participate in the protest by downing shutters between 8 am and 5 pm.

Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Tamil Nadu Small and Tiny Industries Association (Tanstia) president K Mariappan said even though several industries do not operate during peak hours in the mornings and evenings due to low orders, they are forced to pay 15 per cent peak hour charges.

Also, MSMEs that were paying Rs 35 as a fixed charge for consuming up to 112 kw, are now paying Rs 75 for up to 50 kw and RS 150 for consumption above 50 kW since April 10.

“The peak hour charges have come as a death blow to units which were closing down one by one due to several other issues,” he said.

In a letter written to chief secretary V Irai Anbu dated April 10, Mariappan said their main demand is for the reduction in the power tariff that has been submitted to the Chief Minister MK Stalin. He said the CM promised them that Tangedco would look into the issue and take appropriate decisions to safeguard MSMEs.

Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission (TNERC) informed us that 25% extra on energy charges could be collected for 20% of the total power consumption till the installation of ToD (Time of Day meters which reveal peak hour consumption clearly) meters and that peak hour would be between 6 am to 10 am and between 6 pm to 10 pm. However, MSMEs were being penalised from September 2022 for no fault of theirs as Tangedco was unable to install ToD meters. “Hence we feel that MSMEs should not be billed for peak hours till the meters are installed,” Mariappan added.

Besides demanding to resume the old power tariff system, the industrial sector is also up in arms against restricting the units in the industrial estates of the Small Industries Development Corporation (SIDCO) to a 99-year lease period. “This will impact the growth of the industrial sector,” said representatives of the industrial sector.