Tata Power has bagged the licence for supplying power to Odisha for 25 years.
Odisha Electricity Regulatory Commission (OERC) chosen the company to supply and sell electricity in five Odisha circle extend to Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Paradip and Dhenkanal. These circles constitute Central Electricity Supply Utility of Odisha (CESU), The HinduBusinessline reported.
In a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) operation, Odisha’s government will own 49 per cent of the equity and Tata Power’s would hold the remaining 51 per cent. With OERC awarding the letter of intent to Tata Power, it got a green signal for the acquisition of CESU for the next 25 years.
The move comes to the ailing company as a boost, which can double its current number of customers. It currently has a consumer base of 25 lakhs. It can hit the mark of up to 50 lakh customers with Odisha in its possession.
Earlier, Hemant Kanoria-controlled India Power Corporation Ltd was in bid to acquire Central Electricity Supply Utility (CESU). After Delhi Vidyut Board was handed over to Tata Power Delhi Distribution Ltd and BSES Delhi— a joint venture of Reliance Infrastructure Limited and Government of NCT of Delhi, this has been the first privatisation of a discom.
CESU, with an objective of “to be the best distribution utility of India” has been extended up to 30,000 Sq and its average demand, according to FY18, has been 1,300 MW.
Bringing what was once CESU’s aim, Sanjay Banga, Tata Power President said, they plan to develop Orissa’s 24×7 reliable power supply system and unparalleled customer service, leveraging their existing electricity distribution experience in Delhi, Mumbai and Ajmer with effective social involvement.
Together with its allies and subsidiaries, Tata power has an installed capacity of 10763 MW.
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