Discoms’ outstanding dues to power gencos rise to Rs 10,763 cr in March
The portal was launched in May 2018 to bring in transparency in power purchase transactions between the generators and discoms
Power producers’ total outstanding dues owed by distribution firms jumped to Rs 10,763 crore in March 2020 over the same month previous year, reflecting stress in the sector. Distribution companies (discoms) owed a total of Rs 13,033 crore to power generation companies in March 2019, according to portal PRAA (Payment Ratification And Analysis in Power procurement for bringing Transparency in Invoicing of generators).
The portal was launched in May 2018 to bring in transparency in power purchase transactions between the generators and discoms.
Power producers give 60 days to discoms for paying bills for the supply of electricity. After that, outstanding dues become overdue and generators charge penal interest on that in most cases.
In order to give relief to power generation companies (gencos), the Centre enforced a payment security mechanism from August 1, 2019. Under this mechanism, discoms are required to open letters of credit for getting power supply.
Discoms in Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu account for the major portion of dues to power gencos, the data showed.
Among private generators, discoms owe the highest overdue of Rs 3,201.68 crore to Tata Power Company Limited (TPCL) at Rs 1,760.09 crore and Adani Green Energy Limited (AGEL) at Rs 1,272.64 crore.
