Saturday, 31 Dec 2011
ET reported that Indian power companies will get coal blocks only if they quote low tariffs, a move that is expected to revive investment in the sector and protect consumers from spiraling electricity rates.
A top mines ministry official said blocks earmarked for the power sector will be given to states which will have to invite tariff based bids for electricity supply and than the states, in consultation with the power ministry, will then recommend allocation of blocks to the lowest bidders to the coal ministry.
The official said "This decision has been taken after the power ministry insistence to avoid a spike in retail electricity tariff. Since January 2011, power companies have to participate in tariff based bidding to bag state electricity contracts. Companies would have quoted higher tariff if coal blocks came at a high cost."
The government plans to auction 51 coal mines with 18,600 million tonnes of reserves after a gap of three years.
The official said cement and steel companies will have to participate in a two stage bidding process that will be based on upfront payment.
The mines ministry will notify the auction by competitive bidding of coal mines rules, 2011 once they are vetted by the law ministry. It expects aggressive bidding for the mines as overall coal deficit is likely to increase to 238 million tonnes by 2016-2017 from the present 53 million tonnes.
The government is already planning steps to cap electricity tariffs of companies that have secure supplies from Coal India or captive mines.
(Sourced from ET)
Showing posts with label power tariff. Show all posts
Showing posts with label power tariff. Show all posts
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Thursday, January 20, 2011
All Odisha Steel Foundation criticizes Orissa Mining Corporation over irrational pricing
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Bhubaneswar: Convener of All Odisha Steel Foundation (AOSF), PL Kandoi has identified “irrational pricing” of iron ore by the Odisha Mining Corporation, extortionist pricing by transport cartels, non-allocation of mines to the steel units as promised in the MoUs signed by the State Government in spite of most units meeting all the criteria, 50 times hike in water tax and the move of Gridco to raise the price of power as the factors that are pushing over 350 units to closure.
These units need urgent attention by the Government so that they are saved from shutdown, he said at a Press conference here on Tuesday. Kandoi said the commitment made by the Government in December last to sort out their ore sourcing problem within 30 days has not been met.
He rued the inaction of the Government and the indifference of the Chief Minister as exemplified by his reluctance to even meet an AOSF delegation to present their problems, while lakhs of employees of the units and their family members are faced with a bleak future because the units are not going remain operational much longer.
Kandoi brushed aside the declaration made recently by the State Government to reserve 60 per cent of the ore produced in the State for small and medium units as inconsequential because its effectiveness would be felt after a few years while the units are not likely to survive beyond a few months. He demanded that the units be given their own mines as promised by the Government in the MoUs.
sourced:OrissaDiary
Bhubaneswar: Convener of All Odisha Steel Foundation (AOSF), PL Kandoi has identified “irrational pricing” of iron ore by the Odisha Mining Corporation, extortionist pricing by transport cartels, non-allocation of mines to the steel units as promised in the MoUs signed by the State Government in spite of most units meeting all the criteria, 50 times hike in water tax and the move of Gridco to raise the price of power as the factors that are pushing over 350 units to closure.
These units need urgent attention by the Government so that they are saved from shutdown, he said at a Press conference here on Tuesday. Kandoi said the commitment made by the Government in December last to sort out their ore sourcing problem within 30 days has not been met.
He rued the inaction of the Government and the indifference of the Chief Minister as exemplified by his reluctance to even meet an AOSF delegation to present their problems, while lakhs of employees of the units and their family members are faced with a bleak future because the units are not going remain operational much longer.
Kandoi brushed aside the declaration made recently by the State Government to reserve 60 per cent of the ore produced in the State for small and medium units as inconsequential because its effectiveness would be felt after a few years while the units are not likely to survive beyond a few months. He demanded that the units be given their own mines as promised by the Government in the MoUs.
sourced:OrissaDiary
Chhattisgarh mini steel plants demand package to shut down
Sourced By Business standard by R Krishna DasKolkata/ Raipur December 6, 2010, 0:22 IST Mini steel plants in Chhattisgarh are demanding packages, ironically, not for survival but for closure of their units that have been passing through worst-ever crises.
The 175- odd mini steel plants in the state are on the verge of closure. But industrialists are helpless to shut down the units. They require paying the minimum electricity charges even if the unit closed down production and fail to consume even a unit of power.
A mini steel plant paying an electricity bill of Rs 50 lakh per month when on full scale production will be required to pay Rs 12 lakh every month as fixed demand charges even if it failed to consume a single unit of power, state's sponge manufacturers association President Anil Nachrani said.
The minimum charge is applicable on the industrial units that come in the category of High Tension (HT) consumers as per the Electricity Act. The industrials are demanding that the fixed demand charges levied at Rs 310 per kilovolt amperes (KVA) kilovolt amperes should be curtailed to Rs 155 per KVA.
The state government would have to incur a huge loss of over Rs 180 crore if the charge was curtailed to half, state's energy secretary Aman Singh told Business Standard. "Still, the state government is examining the plea of the industrialists before taking any decision to announce package," he added.
The steel makers are demanding package from the state government to bail out from the present crises. According to Nachrani, 50 of the 175 mini steels plants have already closed production while the remaining have curtailed production by 50 per cent.
The conversion loss while making finished goods and high price of iron ore had been the reasons for plunging the steel plants in Chhattisgarh into deep crises. "The finished goods are not getting reasonable price as compared to the conversion (production) cost," Nachrani said.
Industrialists are willing to close down the units if the state government curtails the electricity charge. They believe that if they fail to earn (by continue with the production), it is wiser not to bear the loss by paying electricity charges.
A mini steel plant paying an electricity bill of Rs 50 lakh per month when on full scale production will be required to pay Rs 12 lakh every month as fixed demand charges even if it failed to consume a single unit of power, state's sponge manufacturers association President Anil Nachrani said.
The minimum charge is applicable on the industrial units that come in the category of High Tension (HT) consumers as per the Electricity Act. The industrials are demanding that the fixed demand charges levied at Rs 310 per kilovolt amperes (KVA) kilovolt amperes should be curtailed to Rs 155 per KVA.
The state government would have to incur a huge loss of over Rs 180 crore if the charge was curtailed to half, state's energy secretary Aman Singh told Business Standard. "Still, the state government is examining the plea of the industrialists before taking any decision to announce package," he added.
The steel makers are demanding package from the state government to bail out from the present crises. According to Nachrani, 50 of the 175 mini steels plants have already closed production while the remaining have curtailed production by 50 per cent.
The conversion loss while making finished goods and high price of iron ore had been the reasons for plunging the steel plants in Chhattisgarh into deep crises. "The finished goods are not getting reasonable price as compared to the conversion (production) cost," Nachrani said.
Industrialists are willing to close down the units if the state government curtails the electricity charge. They believe that if they fail to earn (by continue with the production), it is wiser not to bear the loss by paying electricity charges.
Steel and sponge iron units demand rationalisation of power tariff
Courtsey by BS Reporter
Kolkata/ Bhubaneswar January 20, 2011, 0:16 IST
The small and medium sized steel plants and the sponge iron units in Orissa, currently grappling with the problem of steep prices of raw materials, have called for rationalization of the power tariff. They have demanded that the power tariff for these industrial users be reduced by half.
Addressing media persons here, P L Kandoi, president of the All Orissa Steel Federation said, “The power tariff for the industrial users which now stands at Rs 3.75 paise per unit is going to be raised to Rs 4.25 paise per unit from April 1 this year. The state government is going for an abnormal hike in power tariff and the units are not in a position to operate at such a high tariff. Our demand is that the power tariff should be reduced by half. The Madhya Pradesh government has brought down the power tariff for industries to Rs 1.55 per unit and there is no reason why the Orissa government cannot do the same.”
The All Orissa Steel Federation has also pointed out that the water tariff, which has been increased by 30 times recently by the state government, is also unbearable for these units. To make matters worse, the water cess is payable even if the plant is closed or water is partly used.
The federation is also sore over the exorbitant costs of ore transportation in the state.
"The ore transportation cost in Orissa is much higher compared to other states. For example, the cost of transportation of ore from Keonjhar to Kalinga Nagar is Rs 1100 per tonne while from Daitari to Paradeep is Rs 1500 per tonne. The state government should ensure that there is no exploitation in logistics cost”, Kandoi added.
Another area of concern is the inadequate availability of raw materials and the steep hike in prices of iron ore and chrome ore.
Kolkata/ Bhubaneswar January 20, 2011, 0:16 IST
The small and medium sized steel plants and the sponge iron units in Orissa, currently grappling with the problem of steep prices of raw materials, have called for rationalization of the power tariff. They have demanded that the power tariff for these industrial users be reduced by half.
Addressing media persons here, P L Kandoi, president of the All Orissa Steel Federation said, “The power tariff for the industrial users which now stands at Rs 3.75 paise per unit is going to be raised to Rs 4.25 paise per unit from April 1 this year. The state government is going for an abnormal hike in power tariff and the units are not in a position to operate at such a high tariff. Our demand is that the power tariff should be reduced by half. The Madhya Pradesh government has brought down the power tariff for industries to Rs 1.55 per unit and there is no reason why the Orissa government cannot do the same.”
The All Orissa Steel Federation has also pointed out that the water tariff, which has been increased by 30 times recently by the state government, is also unbearable for these units. To make matters worse, the water cess is payable even if the plant is closed or water is partly used.
The federation is also sore over the exorbitant costs of ore transportation in the state.
"The ore transportation cost in Orissa is much higher compared to other states. For example, the cost of transportation of ore from Keonjhar to Kalinga Nagar is Rs 1100 per tonne while from Daitari to Paradeep is Rs 1500 per tonne. The state government should ensure that there is no exploitation in logistics cost”, Kandoi added.
Another area of concern is the inadequate availability of raw materials and the steep hike in prices of iron ore and chrome ore.
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