BHUBANESWAR: As the cash-starved Gridco is bleeding heavily due to purchase of costly power to meet the crisis situation, the State power trading utility is seriously contemplating to approach the Government to stand guarantee for a ` 1,000-crore loan to tide over the cash crunch position.Gridco, the sole bulk power supply agency in the State, badly requires funds to meet its contractual obligations with distribution companies (Distcoms) which have resorted to load shedding due to acute shortage of power. The utility is forced to buy costly power ranging from ` 5 to ` 17 a unit to partly meet the shortfall.While Gridco has projected its annual revenue requirement for the 2011-12 at `6,605 crore, the Orissa Electricity Regulatory Commission (OERC) computed the actual requirement at ` 5,953 crore. However, it approved the bulk supply tariff (BST) at ` 5,206 crore leaving a gap of ` 746 crore.The regulator directed that this gap may be adjusted from power trading, unscheduled intervention (UI), recovery of arrears from Distcoms over and above the current BST and subvention from the State Government.As the water availability in major reservoirs in southern Odisha is around 30 per cent of their capacity, this has resulted in inadequate generation of hydro power. The expected shortage of power from the hydro generating stations will be to the tune of 1,600 million unit.In order to make good power deficit, Gridco is purchasing high cost thermal power.Sources in Gridco said the procurement of high cost power will affect the financial health of the company by around ` 600 crore. Hike in cost of coal and its shortage resulting in low thermal generation has further complicated the financial condition of Gridco. In the current tariff structure, Gridco is not allowed to recover the additional cost of fuel from the consumers on monthly basis.According to a rough estimate, the additional fuel cost for the current fiscal will be around ` 400 crore. The State utility is unable to collect the bulk supply tariff fixed by OERC due to a stay order by the Odisha High Court. Though the stay was vacated during June 2011, restriction on domestic tariff still continues and Gridco has not been able to realise the differential revenue of ` 337 crore for the first quarter from the Distcoms.Gridco is likely to face a cash shortfall of over ` 2,000 crore in the current fiscal with the bankers reluctant to bail it out.
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