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Himachal Electricity Regulator Finalizes Resource Adequacy Framework Regulations

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					</table>The <a href="https://jercjkl.nic.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission</a> has released draft resource adequacy regulations for the state of Goa and the union territories (UTs) of Andaman and Nicobar, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu, Lakshadweep, and Puducherry.
The regulations aim to enable the implementation of the resource adequacy framework by outlining a mechanism for planning generation and transmission resources to reliably meet the projected demand in compliance with specified reliability standards.
The framework will cover demand assessment and forecasting, generation resource planning, procurement planning, and monitoring and compliance.
Distribution licensees must develop and prepare a Long-Term Distribution Resource Adequacy Plan (LT-DRAP), Medium-Term Distribution Resource Adequacy Plan (MT-DRAP), and Short-Term Distribution Resource Adequacy Plan (ST-DRAP) following the conditions under these regulations.
Long-term and Medium-term Demand Forecast
Distribution licensees must assess and forecast demand (MW) and energy (MWh) within their control area, including partial open access consumers. They must determine the load forecast for each consumer category for which the Commission has determined separate retail tariffs.
Distribution licensees must modify the load obtained on either side for each consumer category by considering the impact for each. The effect will be considered by developing trajectories for each activity based on the economic parameters, policies, historical data, and projections for the future.
The long and medium-term load profiles of the consumer categories for which load research has been conducted may be refined based on load research analysis. Distribution licensees must provide a detailed explanation for the refinement conducted.
Short-term Demand Forecast 
Distribution licensees must develop a methodology for at least hourly or sub-hourly demand forecasting and maintain a historical database.
The state load dispatch center (SLDC) will aggregate demand forecasts by distribution licensees, considering the load diversity, congruency, and seasonal variation aspects for the aggregation of demand forecast. It will submit state-level aggregate demand forecasts (MW and MWh) in different time horizons.
Distribution licensees must also submit demand forecasts to the SLDC by April 30 each year.
Generation Resource Planning 
Distribution licensees must map all their contracted existing, upcoming, and retiring resources to develop the existing resource map in MW for the long and medium-term.
Constraints such as penalties for unmet demand, forced outages, spinning reserve requirements, and system emission limits will be identified and listed.
Distribution licensees must compute capacity credit (CC) factors for their contracted generation resources by applying the net load-based approach. The process for CC factor determination must be undertaken each year, considering the past five years.
CC factors for hydro generation resources must be computed based on water availability with different CC factors for run-of-the-river hydropower projects and dam-based/storage-based hydropower projects.
Distribution licensees must analyze the sensitivity and probability to determine the most probable resource gap.
They must develop an LT-DRAP, MT-DRAP, and ST-DRAP based on the most probable scenario.
Based on the allocated share in the national peak provided in the Long-term National Resource Adequacy Plan (LT-NRAP) for the state, the STU or SLDC will allocate each distribution licensees’ share in the state or UT peak within 15 days of the publication of LT-NRAP-based on average of the percentage share coincident peak demand and the percentage share in the state or UT noncoincident peak demand.
The distribution licensee shall keep a minimum of 70% of the resource adequacy requirement (RAR) through long-term contracts, a minimum of 20% of RAR through medium-term agreements, and meet the remaining requirements through short-term contracts.
Distribution licensees must perform LT-DRAP, MT-DRAP, and ST-DRAP exercises by August 31 each year.
Power Procurement Planning
In their power procurement strategy, distribution licensees must identify an optimal procurement generation resource mix to enable smooth renewable energy integration in their power procurement resource options portfolio while meeting reliability standards.
Procurement must be consistent with the identified resource mix and consider the overall national electricity plan and policies notified by the appropriate government.
The power procurement from wind, solar photovoltaic, wind-solar hybrid, and round-the-clock generations must be carried out per the guidelines for a tariff-based competitive bidding process notified by the Ministry of Power.
While determining the modalities and tenure of the procurement of the resource mix, distribution licensees may ensure that available capacity within the state or UT must be optimized at the initial level.
They must demonstrate to the Commission a 100% tie-up for the first year and a minimum 90% tie-up for the second year to fulfill their contribution’s requirement towards meeting the state or UT peak.
Distribution licensees must factor in the possibility of short-term capacity sharing while preparing the resource adequacy plan optimally utilize the platform for inter-state capacity sharing or trading mechanism created by the Central Commission, and optimize the capacity costs. They must submit information about the contracted capacity to the SLDC and the STU for compliance verification.
Any new capacity arrangement or tie-up will be subject to the Commission’s prior approval, given the necessity and reasonableness of the cost of power purchase and the promotion of working efficiently, economically, and equitably.
Distribution licensees must submit the list of all existing power purchase agreements executed with different conventional power plants, RE generators, and the RAP.
Based on the LT-DRAP, MT-DRAP, and ST-DRAP, the STU and SLDC will communicate the state-aggregated capacity shortfall to the Commission by September 15 each year and advise the distribution licensees to commit to additional capacities.
SLDC will levy and collect non-compliance charges from the concerned distribution licensee for any shortfalls in resource adequacy compliance.
Distribution licensees must maintain and share all the demand assessment and forecasting data with the STU/SLDC, including but not limited to consumer data, historical demand data, weather data, demographics, etc.
They must also maintain all statistics and databases about policies and drivers, such as LED penetration, efficient fan penetration, appliance penetration, demand side management and energy efficiency measures, increased usage of electrical appliances for cooking, etc.
The Commission can occasionally issue and relax such directions and orders for implementing these regulations.
In consultation with the Central Electricity Authority, the Ministry of Power <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/government-guidelines-resource-adequacy-framework" target="_blank" rel="noopener">released</a> a set of guidelines to establish an institutional mechanism for resource adequacy, spanning from the national level down to the distribution companies in 2023.
Subscribe to Mercom’s real-time <a href="https://mercomindia.com/product/mercoms-renewable-energy-regulatory-updates/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Regulatory Updates</a> to ensure you don’t miss any critical updates from the renewable industry.

JERC Releases Draft Resource Adequacy Regulations for Goa and Union Territories

The Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission (<a href="http://jercuts.gov.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">JERC</a>) for the state of Goa and union territories (UTs) has reduced the late payment surcharge (LPS) from 2% to 1% per month.
The Commission added that the decision was taken acknowledging the gravity and unprecedented nature of the situation prevailing in the country, which has been affecting the ability of the DISCOMs to pay the generators, maintain the distribution infrastructure, and serve bills to the consumers. The order also said that it has also considered the difficulties for the consumers to pay their power dues on time, given the fact that the conventional channels of payment are generally not accessible. “Besides, the industrial and commercial consumers are staring at a situation of low production and demand on services which would severely impact their ability to pay fixed charges of electricity at this time,” added the JERC order.
Noting this, the JERC has also asked the distribution companies (DISCOMs) to extend the due date for the payment of electricity bills (including those already raised) where the deadlines fall between March 24, 2020, and June 30, 2020, by another two weeks without any late payment surcharge. However, if the extended due date falls beyond June 30, 2020, then it will not be further extended.
The Commission decided to mitigate the difficulties being faced by the consumers and DISCOMs of the territories given the nationwide lockdown announced by Prime Minister Modi to arrest the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
Apart from Goa, the electricity departments of Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep Islands, Chandigarh, and Daman and Diu, also come under the jurisdiction of the JERC.
The DISCOMs can raise the bills either by direct meter reading or through provisional bills. The Commission has also asked the DISCOMs to encourage their consumers to take their meter readings, which can be sent through WhatsApp on the number provided, or the DISCOMs can also send the bills by electronic means such as e-mail or SMS. The Commission has directed the DISCOMs to encourage all types of digital payments without demanding any bank transaction charges from the consumers.
“This amount can be considered as the collection expense for the DISCOMs in accounting rate of return (ARR),” the order added. According to the Commission, this relaxation is temporary and is for the billing period starting from March 24, 2020, to June 30, 2020.
The JERC has also asked the DISCOMs to provide a moratorium on payment of fixed charges to all industrial and commercial consumers for the bills that fall between March 24, 2020, to June 30, 2020. The deferred charges will be recovered over the next three bills to be raised after June 30, 2020.
The Commission said that the distribution licensees will be required to borrow or avail additional working capital and added that it would consider the additional expenses that are likely to be incurred by the distribution licensees in its annual percentage rate of the financial year 2020-21.
Background
After the announcement of the lockdown, several stakeholders had approached the Commission to provide relief to the industrial consumers. The electricity department of Puducherry also sought directions on the demands listed by these industries.
The demands included:
<ul>
<li>Waive the fixed cost for March, April, and May 2020</li>
<li>Waive the regulatory surcharge of 4% for these three months</li>
<li>Defer the issue of tariff order for 2020-21 by three months</li>
<li>Advise the Puducherry Electricity Department (PED) to defer the February and March 2020 electricity bill payments and collect in six equal installments without levying any interest starting from May 2020,</li>
<li>To provide electricity at a subsidized rate for at least five years with effect from April 2020 in Dadar and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu</li>
</ul>
Recently, the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) reduced the rate for late payment surcharge payable by DISCOMs to power generators. The surcharge was reduced to 12% per annum from the earlier 18% if the due date falls between March 24, 2020, and June 30, 2020, as previously reported by <a href="https://mercomindia.com/cerc-discoms-reduced-late-payment-surcharge-covid-19-outbreak/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Mercom</a>.
Following this, the Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission also <a href="https://mercomindia.com/punjab-reduce-late-payment-surcharge-discoms/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">provisionally reduced</a> the rate of late payment surcharge to 6% per annum if the due date falls between March 24, 2020, and June 30, 2020. Madhya Pradesh and Delhi have also issued similar orders.
The Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) has <a href="https://mercomindia.com/amid-covid-outbreak-delhi-electricity-consumers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">reduced the rate</a> of LPS from 18% to 12% per annum for bills that are raised between March 24, 2020, and June 30, 2020. On the other hand, Madhya Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (<a href="http://www.mperc.in/index.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">MPERC</a>) has <a href="https://mercomindia.com/late-payment-surcharge-discoms-reduced-madhya-pradesh/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">reduced</a> the rate of current late payment surcharge to be paid by the state’s distribution companies to power generators and inter-state transmission licensees by 0.50% per month.
With the ongoing lockdown amid the COVID-19 outbreak, the center and state governments are making efforts to support the power industry. You can track the latest developments and the impact of Coronavirus on the renewable industry on Mercom <a href="https://mercomindia.com/mercom-coronavirus-live-updates-clean-energy-india/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">India’s live updates blog</a> for COVID-19.

Amid Lockdown, Goa and Union Territories Reduce Late Payment Surcharge to 1% Per Month

The <a href="http://jercuts.gov.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission</a> (JERC) for the state of Goa and union territories has issued an order for generic tariff applicable to the renewable projects for the financial year (FY) 2019-20.
The commission states that since the rates discovered by competitive bidding process are considerably lower than the generic tariffs determined in the earlier years, many of the distribution companies have been procuring renewable energy power by way of competitive bidding rather than the generic tariff. With this tariff revision, the commission intends to rectify this problem.
The order has been in force since September 2, 2019, and will be applicable until March 31, 2020. The tariff determined under the order will be applicable for projects commissioned after the issuance of this order in FY 2019-20 for the entire duration of the tariff period, which is 25 years.
In August 2019, Mercom had <a href="https://mercomindia.com/jerc-tariff-solar-wind-small-hydro-goa/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">reported</a> that for solar PV (gross metering), the JERC had considered 25 years as the ideal tariff period with an interest rate of 10.52% in mainland areas, and 11.52% in island areas.
According to the order, the generic tariff for solar PV power projects (for gross metering) for the state of Goa is ₹4.98 (~$0.069)/kWh and the benefit of accelerated depreciation (AD) is ₹0.37 (~$0.005)/kWh. The net levelized tariff is, therefore, ₹4.61 (~$0.064)/kWh. Similarly, for Chandigarh, the levelized tariff is ₹5.27 (~$0.073)/kWh, and the benefit of accelerated depreciation is ₹0.39 (~$0.005)/kWh, making the net levelized tariff ₹4.88 (~$0.068)/kWh.
The levelized tariff for four union territories, namely Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman, Puducherry, and Diu is ₹4.98 (~$0.069)/kWh. The net levelized tariff for these union territories after factoring in the AD is ₹4.61 (~$0.064)/kWh.
The highest levelized tariff rate has been given to Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep. The levelized tariff rates for these two islands is ₹7.16 (~$0.099)/kWh and the net levelized tariff is ₹6.63 (~$0.092)/kWh.
Earlier, the JERC had proposed for the same generic tariff rates for the state of Goa and union territories.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Generic-Tariff-for-Solar-PV-Power-Projects-for-Gross-Metering.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-15429" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Generic-Tariff-for-Solar-PV-Power-Projects-for-Gross-Metering.png" alt="JERC - Generic Tariff for Solar PV Power Projects (for Gross Metering)" width="634" height="286" srcset="https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Generic-Tariff-for-Solar-PV-Power-Projects-for-Gross-Metering.png 634w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Generic-Tariff-for-Solar-PV-Power-Projects-for-Gross-Metering-300x135.png 300w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Generic-Tariff-for-Solar-PV-Power-Projects-for-Gross-Metering-624x281.png 624w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Generic-Tariff-for-Solar-PV-Power-Projects-for-Gross-Metering-600x271.png 600w" sizes="(max-width: 634px) 100vw, 634px" /></a>
Similarly, the generic tariff for wind energy-based projects in the state of Goa and two union territories of Chandigarh, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli is ₹5.22 (~$0.073)/kWh and the net levelized tariff is ₹4.82 (~$0.067)/kWh. The lowest levelized tariff has been given to Diu, amounting to ₹3.62 (~$0.050)/kWh while Lakshadweep has the highest tariff of ₹7.1 (~$0.099)/kWh. The benefit of accelerated depreciation provided here is ₹0.54 (0.008)/kWh and the net levelized tariff for the island is ₹6.56 (~$0.091)/kWh.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Generic-Tariff-for-Wind-Energy-Based-Projects.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-15430" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Generic-Tariff-for-Wind-Energy-Based-Projects.png" alt="JERC - Generic Tariff for Wind Energy Based Projects" width="633" height="291" srcset="https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Generic-Tariff-for-Wind-Energy-Based-Projects.png 633w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Generic-Tariff-for-Wind-Energy-Based-Projects-300x138.png 300w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Generic-Tariff-for-Wind-Energy-Based-Projects-624x287.png 624w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Generic-Tariff-for-Wind-Energy-Based-Projects-600x276.png 600w" sizes="(max-width: 633px) 100vw, 633px" /></a>
According to the order, for small hydropower projects in mainland areas, the levelized tariff is ₹4.77 (~$0.066)/kWh. The tariff rate will apply for those projects which are lower than or equal to 5 MW. However, the tariff for projects which are above 5 MW but lower than 25 MW is ₹4.33 (~$0.060)/kWh, with the benefit of AD being ₹0.29 (~$0.0040)/kWh.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Small-Hydro-Power-Project-Generic-Tariff.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-15431" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Small-Hydro-Power-Project-Generic-Tariff.png" alt="JERC Small Hydro Power Project Generic Tariff" width="608" height="303" srcset="https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Small-Hydro-Power-Project-Generic-Tariff.png 608w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Small-Hydro-Power-Project-Generic-Tariff-300x150.png 300w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JERC-Small-Hydro-Power-Project-Generic-Tariff-600x299.png 600w" sizes="(max-width: 608px) 100vw, 608px" /></a>
Similarly, for projects which are lower than or equal to 5 MW in island areas, the levelized tariff rate is ₹7.29 (~$0.101)/kWh, and for those small hydropower projects which are above 5 MW but not more than 25 MW, the tariff is ₹6.25 (~$0.087)/kWh.
The tariff period for small hydro projects both for mainland and island areas is 35 years.
In May 2019, the JERC issued <a href="https://mercomindia.com/jerc-draft-solar-net-metering-regulations/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">draft net metering</a> regulations for grid-connected rooftop-mounted, ground-mounted and floating solar PV power projects in Goa and the union territories.

JERC Sets Generic Tariffs for Solar and Other Renewable Projects for 2019-20 in Goa

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