The Draft Electricity (Rights of Consumers) Amendment Rules, 2021:
The Union Ministry of Power has promulgated the Electricity (Transmission System Planning, Development and Recovery of Inter-State Transmission Charges) Rules 2021.
- The rules underpin a system of transmission access which is termed as a General Network Access in the inter-state transmission system.
- This provides flexibility to the States as well as the generating stations to acquire, hold and transfer transmission capacity as per their requirements.
- Thus, the rules will bring in rationality, responsibility and fairness in the process of transmission planning as well as its costs.
- In a major change from the present system of taking transmission access, power plants will not have to specify their target beneficiaries.
- The rules will also empower state power distribution and transmission companies to determine their transmission requirements and build them.
- Also, states will be able to purchase electricity from short term and medium term contracts and optimize their power purchase costs. Apart from introducing GNA, the rules also specify clear roles of various agencies involved in the transmission planning process.
- The Central Electricity Authority shall prepare a short-term plan every year on rolling basis for next 5 years and perspective plan every alternative year on rolling basis for next 10 years.
- The rules have enabled, for the first time, that the transmission capacity can be sold, shared or purchased by the States and generators.
