Nagpur and Aurangabad distribution franchises soon
Makarand Gadgil
The Bhiwandi franchisee model is considered a successful one. Which are the other cities where Mahavitaran is implementing the franchisee model to reduce distribution losses?
The process for appointing a franchisee for Nagpur and Aurangabad will be completed within month or two. We want to give out distribution in other 4-5 cities in the state to franchisees but we would like to wait and see things in Nagpur and Aurangabad stabilised before we start process for appointing franchisees in other cities.
What was the level of technical and commercial T&D losses at the beginning of 11th plan (2007) and what is the current level? What goal has Mahavitaran set for itself at the end of 11th plan (March 12)?
In FY 08, our distribution losses were 24.09 per cent and although FY10 figures are not finalised, we should be between 20 to 20.5 per cent. By the end of the 11th five year plan, we aim to be between 14.5 to 15 per cent and we will achieve the target set by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to reduce T & D losses to 15 per cent.
What makes you confident of achieving the target, especially when in first three years you have brought your T&D losses down only by four per cent or so?
We are hoping that by the end of December this year, our programme for expansion and upgradation of our distribution network will be completed. We are investing around Rs 8,900 crore in this programme. Under this expansion and upgradation programme, we will be adding 1846 substations, 53,000 km of high tension (HT) lines, 22,000 km of LT lines and installing 72,000 distribution transformers. Expanding the HT network means, you are taking power via HT lines closer to the end consumers which reduces technical losses substantially. Out of our current distribution losses, nearly 8-9 per cent are technical losses and by the end of this five year plan, we want to bring them down to five per cent.
How you are financing these projects?
Eighty per cent of the project cost is financed by the Rural Electrification Corporation (REC) and the rest is contributed by the state government as equity to Mahavitran.
What were the measures apart from network upgradation and expansion you took to reduce distribution losses?
We implemented an anti-theft drive on massive scale and are doing it as a sustained operation and not as a one-time activity. In last five years we have caught 3,05,451 cases of theft, in 40,168 cases we registered FIRs and have recovered Rs190 crore by way of tariff, fine and penalty. In fact, Maharashtra was the first state which enacted a special law on power theft which not only helped to give stringent punishment to offenders but also dispose off the cases speedily. The special police stations and courts have been created for handling of the power theft cases. Besides, we also used some ingenious schemes like photometer reading, installing the meters outside the house as used to be the case earlier for better monitoring to reduce losses.
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