Vijayawada: Union minister for power and renewable energy, R K Singh, has again written a letter to chief minister Y S Jaganmohan Reddy over the government’s decision to review power purchase agreements (PPAs). He urged him not to go ahead with the move as it would send wrong signals to investors across the world about the credibility of contracts and agreements in India, besides also jeopardising the national programme for transition towards sustainable energy and commitment for climate change mitigation that the nation has made under the Paris climate agreement.
Singh said in his letter that his ministry has examined the issues that Jagan raised in his letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on July 25. While acknowledging the financial situation of power distribution companies (discoms) as a matter of concern, he said the financial woes of discoms are not because of power tariffs as agreed in the PPAs but for not increasing power tariffs as per Uday norms in AP.
Singh said while it was proposed to increase the tariffs by 3.6% in 2016-17 and 5% each in 2017-18 and 2018-19, the actual increase was only 0.81%, 4.5% and 0% in the respective years in the state. He requested the chief minister to rationalise the tariffs as per norms.
When it comes to wind tariffs, Singh said the tariffs in AP were one of the lowest in the country when compared to other states at the time they were signed.
He said the tariffs differ from state to state and area to area depending on wind velocity, cost of land and state policies. He said the development of renewables is done through fixed tariffs that remain uniform over the life of the plant. The same policy is being followed in advanced countries like Germany and China, he said.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes
