TANGEDCO filed a petition (M.P.18 of 2019) before Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission seeking approval for its capital investment plan for the years FY20, FY21 and FY22. The capital investment plan (CIP) also included detailed for capacity addition in the pipeline as well as demand projections.

TANGEDCO has proposed to add 20 to 28 GW of conventional and RE power by FY27. While doing so, the DISCOM has also projected significant energy surplus. Further, the CIP also seeks approval for capital works in the generation and distribution business (including investment in new power plants, projects for installation of pollution control equipment, network strengthening, loss reduction etc.) costing Rs. 1.5 lakh crores. This is as high as 1.8 times TANGEDCO’s annual revenue requirement.

Given the impact of such investments on future costs, tariffs, subsidies, revenue gaps and operations, our submission highlights the need for extensive public consultation including public hearings as part of the process. Further, given the time and cost overruns in generation and distribution projects in the past, the submission also highlights additional data required to aid approval of prudent costs as well as a ensure better regulatory accountability and tracking of time and cost overruns.