The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) has amended the regulations for Open Access in Interstate Transmission, which were first passed in 2008. The new regulations will be called the CERC (Open Access in Interstate Transmission) (Fifth Amendment) Regulations, 2018.

These regulations will come into force after a notification from the CERC.

Key Amendments

• National Open Access Registry (NOAR) will be a centralized electronic platform owned and operated by the National Load Dispatch Center (NLDC).
• The short-term open access applications will be processed through NOAR, and information related to approvals, rejections, revisions, curtailment and payment schedules will be made available through the NOAR to the respective market participants through email or SMS.
• After stakeholder consultation, the Power System Operation Corporation (POSOCO) will issue the detailed procedure with prior approval of CERC to operationalize open access through NOAR.
• The short-term open access applications for bilateral transactions will be processed by the nodal, Regional Load Dispatch Center (RLDC). NOAR will carry out collective transactions through power exchanges by NLDC.
• Seekers of short-term open access must declare that there is no other contract for sale or purchase of the same power for which standing clearance has been applied for.
• Application for advance scheduling for a bilateral transaction must be submitted to the nodal agency through NOAR up to the fourth month.
• The power exchange will make an application to the nodal agency through the NOAR for scheduling of the collective transactions discovered on its platform. The nodal agency will approve or advise the power exchange to revise the application for scheduling of collective transactions based on the transmission corridor availability in accordance with the detailed procedures.
• All charges payable under these regulations will be paid online through the payment gateway made available in the NOAR.

If the default in payment exceeds 90 days from the due date of payment of the charges, the NLDC or RLDC can deny short-term open access to the defaulting entity without approaching the CERC for specific directions.

In May 2018, CERC released procedural regulations for granting inter-state transmission system (ISTS) connectivity to renewable energy projects. Recently, CERC issued regulations for Draft Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Deviation Settlement Mechanism and related matters) for 2018.