Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (Terms And Conditions For Green Energy Open Access) Regulations, 2024

[12th November 2024]

PREAMBLE

In exercise of powers conferred under Section 181 read with Sections 42, 61(h), 66 and 86(1)(e) of the Electricity Act, 2003, the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission hereby makes the following Regulations, namely Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (Terms and Conditions for Green Energy Open Access) Regulations, 2024 for implementation in the National Capital Territory of Delhi.

Regulation 1. Short Title, Extent and Commencement.

(a)      These Regulations shall be called the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (Terms and Conditions for Green Energy Open Access) Regulations, 2024.

(b)      These Regulations shall extend to the whole of National Capital Territory of Delhi.

(c)      These Regulations shall come into force on the date of its publication in the official gazette.

Regulation 2. Definitions.

In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires,

(a)      "Act" means the Electricity Act, 2003 (36 of 2003);

(b)      "Applicant" means an entity, trading licensee, distribution licensee or a Generator who has applied for seeking Green Energy Open Access, as the case may be;

(c)      "Appropriate Commission" means the Central Regulatory Commission referred to in sub-Section (1) of Section 76 or State Regulatory Commission referred to in Section 82 or Joint Commission referred to in Section 83 of the Act, as the case may be;

(d)      "Banking" means the surplus green energy injected in the grid and credited with the distribution licensee by the Green Energy Open Access consumers and that shall be drawn along with charges to compensate additional costs, if any;

(e)      "Captive Generating Plant" (CGP) means a power plant set up under Section 9 of the Electricity Act, 2003 by any person to generate the electricity primarily for its own use and includes a power plant set by any co-operative society or association of persons for generating electricity primarily for use of members of such co-operative society or association, which fulfills the conditions laid down in the Electricity Act, 2003 and Rules framed thereunder;

(f)       "Central Commission" means the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission referred to in subsection (1) of Section 76 of the Act;

(g)      "Central Nodal Agency" means a Central Nodal Agency as notified by the Central Government to set up and operate a single window Green Energy Open Access system for Green Energy (Renewable Energy) as specified by the Ministry of Power, GoI, in the Electricity (Promoting Renewable Energy through Green Energy Open Access) Rules, 2022;

(h)     "Commission" means the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission constituted under the Act;

(i)       "Consumer" means any person who is supplied with electricity for his own use by a licensee or the Government or by any other person engaged in the business of supplying electricity to the public under the Electricity Act, 2003 or any other law for the time being in force and includes any person whose premises are for the time being connected for the purpose of receiving electricity with the works of a licensee, the Government or such other person, as the case may be;

(j)       "Developer" means the generating company which generates electrical energy from renewable sources of energy;

(k)      "Day Ahead Market (DAM)" means a market where Day Ahead Contracts are transacted on the Power Exchange(s);

(l)       "Entity" means any consumer who has contracted demand or sanctioned load of Hundred (100) KW or more either through single connection or through multiple connections aggregating Hundred (100) KW or more, connected at 11kV or above, located in the area of a same distribution licensee, except for captive consumers.

Provided that there shall not be any load limitation for setting up of Green energy projects for captive use with respect to the consumers contract demand/sanctioned load (kW/MW, KVA/MVA) with Discoms;

(m)    "Existing Open Access Consumer/Customer" means a person already availing open access for sourcing/supplying renewable (green) energy from/to the transmission system and/or distribution system of the licensees in the State under an existing agreement or Commissions Regulations/Orders on the date of coming into force of these Regulations;

(n)     "Fossil Fuel" means fuels such as coal, lignite, gas, liquid fuel, or combination of these as its primary source of energy, which are used in Thermal Generating Station for generating electricity;

(o)      "Green Energy" means the electrical energy from renewable sources of energy including hydro and storage (if the storage uses renewable energy) or any other technology as may be notified by the Government of India from time to time and shall also include any mechanism that utilizes green energy to replace fossil fuels including production of green hydrogen or green ammonia and any other sources as may be determined by the Central Government as per the provision of Clause G of sub-rule (2) of rule 4 of Electricity (Promoting Renewable Energy Through Green Energy Open Access), Rules 2022;

(p)      "Green Energy Open Access Consumer" means any person who has contract demand or sanctioned load of Hundred (100) kW or more, either through single connection or through multiple connections aggregating Hundred (100) kW or more, connected at 11kV or above, located in electricity area of a same distribution licensee, who is supplied with electricity from green energy sources for his own use by a licensee or the Government or from its own Captive Generation Plant or by any other person engaged in the business of supplying electricity to the public under the Electricity Act, 2003 or any other law for the time being in force and includes any person whose premises are for the time being connected for the purpose of receiving green energy with the works of a licensee, the Government or such person, as the case may be.

Provided that there shall not be any load limitation for setting up of Green energy projects for captive use with respect to the consumers contract demand/sanctioned load (kW/MW, KVA/MVA) with Discoms availing power under Green Energy Open Access;

(q)      "Open Access" means the non-discriminatory provisions for use of transmission lines and/or distribution system or associated facilities with such lines or system by any licensees or consumers or a person engaged in generation in accordance with the Regulations specified by the Appropriate Commission;

(r)      "Person" shall include any company or body corporate or association or body of individuals, whether incorporated or not or artificial juridical person;

(s)      "Premises" includes any land, building or structure;

(t)       "Renewable Energy Sources" means Renewable Sources such as large hydro as specified under Regulation 4(2)(a), small hydro, wind, solar including its integration with combined cycle, biomass, bio fuel cogeneration, urban or municipal waste and/or such other source(s) recognized by Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) or any other agency as notified by Government of India or the Commission;

(u)     "Rules" means Rules made under the Electricity Act, 2003 including Electricity (Promoting Renewable Energy Through Green Energy Open Access) Rules, 2022, as amended from time to time;

(v)      "State" means the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCTD);

(w)     "State Transmission Utility" means the Board or the Government company specified as such by the State Government under sub-Section (1) of Section 39 of the Act;

(x)      "State Nodal Agency" (SNA) means the Nodal Agency for grant of open access in the National Capital Territory of Delhi; Delhi State Load Dispatch Centre shall operate as the State Nodal Agency for grant of Short-Term Open Access to Intra-State Transmission System in conjunction with or without Distribution Network of Distribution Licensee of the State.

The State Transmission Utility (STU) shall operate as a State Nodal Agency for grant of MediumTerm and Long-Term Open Access to the Intra-State Transmission Network in conjunction with or without Distribution Network of Distribution Licensee of the State.

The Distribution Licensee shall operate as a Nodal Agency in co-ordination with the SNA for grant of Open Access for the cases wherein the inter-se location of drawl and injection points fall on the Distribution Network of the concerned Distribution Licensee;

(y)      "State Load Dispatch Centre" means State Load Dispatch the Centre established under sub-Section (1) of Section 31 of the Act;

(z)      "Standby Arrangement" means Standby Arrangement provided by the distribution licensee in case the Green Energy Open Access consumer is unable to procure / schedule power from the generating sources with which they have the arrangement to avail the supply due to outages of such generators, transmission assets and the like;

(aa) "Standby Charges" means the charges applicable to green energy open access consumers against the standby arrangement provided by the distribution licensee, in case such green energy open access consumer is unable to procure/schedule power from the generating sources with which they have the agreements to procure, power due to outages of generator, transmission systems and the like;

(bb) "Wheeling" means the operation whereby the distribution system and associated facilities of transmission licensee or distribution licensee, as the case may be, are used by another person for the conveyance of electricity on payment of charges to be determined under Section 62 of the Act;

Regulation 3. Interpretation of Regulations.

In the interpretation of these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires:

(a)      Words and expressions used and not defined in these regulations but defined in the Act or Rules, the IEGC or State Grid Code or State Distribution Code or State Electricity Supply Code shall have the meaning assigned to them under the Act or Rules, IEGC or any other Regulations notified by the Commission as the case may be.

(b)      The General Clauses Act, 1897 (10 of 1897) as amended from time to time, shall apply for the interpretation of these regulations as it applies for interpretation of an Act of Parliament.

(c)      Words in the singular or plural term, as the case may be, shall also be deemed to include the plural or the singular term, respectively.

(d)      The terms "include" or "including" shall be deemed to be followed by "without limitation" or "but not limited to" regardless of whether such terms are followed by such phrases or words of like import.

(e)      References herein to the "Regulations" shall be construed as a reference to these Regulations as amended or modified by the Commission from time to time in accordance with the applicable laws in force.

(f)       The headings are inserted for convenience and may not be taken into account for the purpose of interpretation of these Regulations.

(g)      References to the Statutes, Regulations or Guidelines shall be construed as including all statutory provisions consolidating, amending, or replacing such Statutes, Regulations or Guidelines, as the case may be, referred to.

(h)     In case of inconsistency between any provisions of these Regulations and any other Regulations or order passed by the Commission, the principle of harmonious interpretation shall be applied. Even thereafter, if inconsistency persist, the provisions of these Regulations shall prevail.

Regulation 4. Scope.

These Regulations shall be applicable for allowing Open Access to electricity generated from green energy sources, as defined herein above, and also to the energy from non-fossil fuel based Municipal Solid Waste-toEnergy or Refuse-Derived Fuel (RDF) plants for use of Intra-State Transmission System (InSTS) or distribution system or both in the State including Intra-State Transmission System(s) (InSTS) and/or Distribution System (s) which are incidental to Inter- State Transmission of electricity.

Regulation 5. Criteria for Allowing Green Energy Open Access.

(a)      The Long-Term Green Energy Open Access shall be allowed in accordance with the transmission planning criteria and distribution business plan.

(b)      The Short-Term/Medium-Term Green Energy Open Access shall be allowed, if the request can be accommodated, by utilizing:

(i)       Inherent design margins;

(ii)      Margins available due to variation in power flows and;

(iii)     Margins available due to in-built spare transmission system capacity and/or distribution system capacity created to cater to future load growth;

(c)      Installation of energy meter i.e., ABT compliant meter at generator end as well as at consumer end seeking open access for 1 MW and above. While in case of consumer seeking open access below 1 MW, installation of Special Energy Meter capable of energy recording on 15 minutes time block basis.

(d)      No dues of concerned licensee and/or SNA.

Regulation 6. Categorization of Green Energy Open Access.

The Green Energy Open Access consumers shall be classified into the following categories based on the duration of use of the Intra- State transmission and/or distribution system:

(a)      " Long-term Green Energy Open Access" means the right to use the intra-State transmission system and/or distribution system for a period exceeding five years but not exceeding 25 years.

(b)      " Medium-term Green Energy Open Access" means the right to use the intra-State transmission system and/or distribution system for a period exceeding eleven months but not exceeding five years.

(c)      " Short-Term Green Energy Open Access" means open access for a period up to eleven months.

Provided that on expiry of Short-term Green Open Access, irrespective of the period for which the same was granted, if such consumer desires to avail the Short-Term Green Energy Open Access for a further period, it shall be required to file a fresh application and the priority shall be fixed on the basis of date of submission of such fresh application.

Regulation 7. Application procedure for Green Energy Open Access.

(a)      All applications for Green Energy Open Access shall be made in the prescribed Form along with necessary documents, details, and fee if any, to be submitted to the Central Nodal agency in accordance with these Regulations. The applications shall be forwarded to the State Nodal Agency (SNA) by the Central Nodal Agency.

The State Nodal Agency (SNA) shall forward the Application to the concerned Distribution Licensee for the cases wherein the inter-se points of drawl and injection falls on the Distribution Network of the respective Distribution Licensee and concerned Distribution Licensee shall process the application in accordance with these Regulations.

Provided that, till such time, the procedures and formats are devised by Central Nodal Agency, the existing procedures / formats laid down by the respective State Nodal Agency for granting open access may be followed in the matter.

(b)      All applicants seeking Green Energy Open Access shall submit an undertaking of not having entered into Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) or any other bilateral agreement with more than one person for the capacity (quantum of power) for which Green Energy Open Access is sought.

Notwithstanding anything contained in Regulation 7(b) above, a drawee entity (consumer/distribution licensee) shall be eligible to enter into Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) or any other bilateral agreement with more than one person within the quantum of Green Energy Open Access granted or sought by it.

(c)      The State Nodal Agency shall coordinate with transmission licensees including STU and the Distribution Licensees to make available all relevant information regarding green energy open access to the public on the portal of the Central Nodal Agency.

Regulation 8. Eligibility Criteria for applying Green Energy Open Access.

(a)      The Consumer who has contracted demand or sanctioned load of Hundred (100) KW or more, connected at 11kV or above, either through single connection or through multiple connections aggregating Hundred (100) kW or more located in area of a same distribution licensee, shall be eligible for Open Access for sourcing Green Energy (RE) under these Regulations.

Provided that in case of a consumer having Captive Generating Plant, there shall not be any load limitation in terms of contract demand/sanctioned load (kW/MW, KVA/MVA) with Discoms.

(b)      For a minimum number of 12 time blocks, the consumer shall not change the quantum of power consumed through Green Energy Open Access so as to avoid high variations in demand to be met by the distribution licensee.

(c)      Subject to the provisions of these Regulations and system availability, consumers, licensees and/or generating company shall be eligible for Green Energy Open Access to the Intra-State Transmission System of the State Transmission Utility or any Transmission Licensee(s) and/or Distribution System(s) of the Distribution Licensee within the State on payment of transmission, wheeling charges and other charges as may be determined by the Commission from time to time. The Green energy open access consumer shall have to install ABT Compliant meters/Special Energy Meter at their place for energy accounting and Remote Terminal Unit (RTU) to facilitate SLDC in real time monitoring, which shall be duly certified by the licensee concerned.

Provided that Green Energy Open Access consumer seeking open access below 1 MW, shall be allowed based on installation of Special Energy Meter capable of energy recording on 15 minutes time block basis.

Provided that notwithstanding anything contained in these Regulations, any Green Energy (RE) Generating Company having subsisting Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with the Distribution Licensee, shall not be entitled to Green Energy Open Access for the Green Energy (RE) capacity, for which PPA is entered into as well as for any capacity (quantum of power) for which Open Access is already granted, except in accordance with the terms of such PPA.

(d)      Every person, who has constructed a Captive Generating Plant (CGP) shall have the right to open access as per the provisions of Section 9 and other provisions of the Act read with Rules and Regulations framed under the Act and Order(s) of the Commission on the subject matter.

(e)      The consumer seeking Green Energy Open Access shall submit the application to the Central Nodal Agency.

Regulation 9. Allotment Priority.

(a)      Distribution licensee shall have the highest priority over other Green Energy Open Access consumers.

(b)      Green Energy Open Access consumers shall have preference (priority) over normal Open Access consumers in the same category of open access.

(c)      Amongst the Green Energy Open Access consumers, Long-Term Green Energy Open Access consumers shall have preference (priority) followed by Medium-Term Green Energy Open Access consumers and subsequently Short-Term Green Energy Open Access consumers, at any given time, subject to availability of spare transmission/distribution system capacity margins.

Provided that the Green Energy Open Access shall be granted on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Regulation 10. Procedure for grant of Green Energy Open Access.

(a)      Once the application is forwarded to the concerned State Nodal Agency by the Central Nodal Agency for further verification, the same shall be decided by the State Nodal Agency within 15 days from the date on which the application is received by State Nodal Agency from Central Nodal Agency.

The following time schedules shall be followed for processing the Application:

(b)      An application for open access shall be accompanied with the proof of payment of a non-refundable processing fee, as detailed herein below, to the State Nodal Agency:

(i)       Rupees Fifty Thousand for Long-Term Green Energy Open Access,

(ii)      Rupees Twenty-Five Thousand for Medium-Term Green Energy Open Access, and

(iii)     Rupees Five Thousand for Short-Term Green Energy Open Access.

(c)      An application for a Short-Term Green Energy Open Access, for Green Energy Generating plant(s) or its/their generating unit(s) which are yet to be commissioned, shall be submitted not before two months prior to the commissioning date of such Green Energy Generating plant(s) or its/their generating unit(s), to avoid unnecessary blocking of corridor.

(d)      An application for Long-Term/Medium-Term Green Energy Open Access shall be accompanied by a Bank Guarantee (BG) of Rupees Fifty thousand (Rs. 50,000/-) for Green Open Access capacity less than 1 MW and Rupees One lakh per MW (Rs. 1,00,000/- per MW) for 1 MW & above which shall be kept valid and subsisting till the signing of agreement for transmission and/or wheeling of electricity and such BG shall be encashed by the State Nodal Agency, if the application is withdrawn by the applicant prior to the signing of such agreement. On signing of the agreement for transmission and/or wheeling of electricity, the BG shall be returned within 25 working days to the applicant by the State Nodal Agency.

(e)      In case there is any material change with regards to the location of the injection point or quantum of power to be interchanged using the intra-State transmission and/or distribution system, a fresh application shall be required to be submitted for the entire capacity to ascertain the system availability and such application shall be accompanied by relevant documents and application fees. Moreover, in case of LongTerm and Medium-Term Green Energy Open Access, bank guarantee shall also be required to be furnished for the additional capacity. It is also clarified that in case the additional capacity sought for cannot be accommodated in the existing network, the applicant shall be entitled to Green Energy Open Access to the extent of his original allotment.

(f)       The Bank Guarantee (BG) shall be returned by the State Nodal Agency (SNA) within 25 working days; (i) from the date of submission of signed agreement by open access consumer to the State Nodal Agency (SNA), in case of deemed approval considered for open access; (ii) from the date of rejection of application for open access by SNA on ground of non-availability of margin in the network and; (iii) from the date of rejection of application by SNA due to any deficiency or defect. In case of rejection of application on a ground of any deficiency or defect a fresh application to the Central Nodal portal shall be required to be submitted by the applicant after curing the deficiency or defect.

(g)      The State Nodal Agency shall communicate to the applicant through a recognized mode of communication regarding the grant of Green Energy Open Access or otherwise.

(h)     Further, during the pendency of application for grant of Green Energy Open Access, the applicant shall not inject any energy to the licensees network and the licensee shall not be liable to pay any charges for the energy injected during such period if any.

(i)       The Transmission Licensee(s), Distribution Licensee(s), SLDC and STU shall ensure proper coordination while arranging for Green Energy Open Access.

(j)       New Green Energy (RE) generating plant(s) or generating Unit(s) or generating company(ies) which has/have obtained connectivity on its name, shall apply for seeking Long-Term Green Energy Open Access and enter into agreement for wheeling and/or transmission on its name, and shall commission such plant(s) or unit(s) within twenty-four months from the date of Green Energy Open Access Application, or the schedule date of commencement of open access/COD of the plant as specified in the respective PPA/transmission agreement/wheeling agreement, whichever is earlier, as case may be, failing which, the Green Energy Open Access granted shall be deemed to have been cancelled, to avoid unnecessary blocking of the corridor.

Provided that in case the project developer is ready for commissioning of the project but such projects are unable to commission due to non-availability of transmission/distribution network on account of failure of licensee, such generator or generating company shall have the liberty to approach the Commission, with supporting documentary evidence, for extension of COD, preferably, prior to three (3) months from the date of the completion of timelines as specified above.

(k)      A Green Energy Open Access consumer shall enter into commercial agreements with generators or generating company, trading licensee, distribution licensee, as may be applicable, and such agreements shall include provisions pertaining to payment security mechanism.

(l)       The State Nodal Agency shall host on its website the details of every application received from the Central Nodal Agency and update the status of such application on a continuous basis, which shall be made available to the public.

(m)    The State Nodal Agency/Distribution Licensee shall prepare procedure for grant of Green Energy Open Access consisting of documents, formats etc. required to be submitted for Green Energy Open Access in line with the provisions of the Act, Rules, Regulations, Orders and Procedure followed by Central Nodal Agency, for smooth implementation of the Green Energy Open Access in the State and get the same approved from the Commission within 90 days from the date of Notification of these Regulations.

Regulation 11. Procedure for applying for Day Ahead Green Energy Open Access Transactions.

(a)      The applicant shall apply to the Central Portal for Day Ahead Green Energy Open Access Transactions in the standard application format. For the applications received by the State Nodal Agency from the Central Nodal Agency, before 13:00 hours of the day immediately preceding the day of scheduling for day-ahead Green Energy Open Access transaction, the State Nodal Agency shall check for congestion in the system and convey grant of approval or otherwise to the applicant through e-mail or fax, not later than 15:00 hours of the day immediately preceding the day of scheduling for day-ahead transaction, after ensuring that there is no subsisting PPA for the capacity sought under Green Energy Open Access.

Provided that where Green Energy Open Access is denied, the State Nodal Agency shall furnish reasons thereof to the applicant.

(b)      Non-refundable processing fee of Five Thousand Rupees for each transaction shall be paid by the applicant, in the manner as prescribed by the State Nodal Agency like by way of a demand draft or payment through electronic transfer in favour of the State Nodal Agency.

Provided that the actual operationalization of Green Energy Open Access shall be effected subject to payment by the applicant of the charges as specified in these Regulations and orders passed by the Commission from time to time, before 17:00 hours of the day immediately preceding the day of scheduling for day-ahead transaction.

Provided further that for a minimum of 12 time-blocks, the consumer shall not change the quantum of power consumed through open access so as to avoid high variations in demand to be met by the distribution licensee.

Regulation 12.

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Regulation 13.

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Regulation 14. Utilization, Non-Utilization of Service by Green Energy Open Access Consumers.

A medium-term/long-term consumer shall not relinquish his rights and obligations specified in the Green Energy Open Access agreement without prior approval of the State Nodal Agency/licensee. The relinquishment of such rights and obligations by a long-term and medium-term consumer shall be subject to payment of compensation, as per the provisions of these Regulations.

Regulation 15. Charges for Green Energy Open Access.

The charges on Green Energy Open Access consumers shall be as follows:

(a)      Transmission charges;

(b)      Wheeling charges;

(c)      Cross subsidy Surcharge;

(d)      Additional Surcharge;

(e)      Standby Charges wherever applicable;

(f)       Banking facility and Charges;

(g)      Other fees and charges such as SLDC fees, scheduling charges, deviation settlement (DSM) charges as per the relevant Regulations, Orders of the Commission, transaction charges, Regulatory Surcharge, Metering Charges, Payment of statutory levies/taxes by Open Access Consumers and Pension Trust Surcharge.

(h)     Relinquishment and its Charges

(i)       Any other charges as defined by Commission by separate order

Provided that all green energy open access consumer shall be exempted from the Wheeling, Transmission, Cross Subsidy Surcharge and Additional Surcharge to the extent of quantum of RPO compliance.

13.1 Transmission Charges

Green Energy Open Access Consumer using transmission system shall pay the charges as stated hereunder:

(a)      For use of inter-State transmission system:

As specified by the Central Commission from time to time.

(b)      For use of intra-State transmission system:

The Transmission Charges for Long-Term, Medium-Term and Short-Term Green Energy Open Access shall be as per the prevailing provisions of the Regulations and/or Orders passed by the Commission from time to time.

The applicable rate of Transmission Charge and transmission losses payable by Green Energy Open Access Consumer shall be specified by the Commission in its Tariff Order.

13.2 Wheeling Charges

(a)      Wheeling charges payable to distribution licensee, by the Green Energy Open Access Consumer for usage of its system shall be as determined by the Commission in the tariff order from time to time:

(i)       The Commission shall specify the wheeling charge of the Distribution Licensee.

(ii)      The rate of Wheeling Charge payable by Green Energy Open Access Consumer shall be specified by the Commission in its Tariff Order.

(iii)     Wheeling Charge for Green Energy Open Access shall be computed in Paisa/kWh and it shall be charged on the energy wheeled.

(b)      In addition to Wheeling Charge, Wheeling loss shall be applicable to green energy open access consumers or generator, as the case may be, seeking Green Energy Open Access and it shall be as determined by the Commission in the tariff order from time to time.

(c)      Wheeling charges, wheeling losses shall not be applicable in case green energy open access consumer is connected to the transmission system directly or using dedicated lines owned by the consumer or generating station.

13.3 Cross Subsidy Surcharge

(a)      The Green Energy Open Access consumer shall be required to pay cross subsidy surcharge as provided in relevant Tariff Orders issued by the Commission from time to time, in addition to transmission and/or wheeling charges. Cross subsidy surcharge determined by the Commission on Per Unit basis shall be payable, on billing cycle basis, by the open access consumers based on the energy consumed during the billing period through open access. The amount of surcharge shall be paid to the distribution licensee in whose area of supply such consumer is situated.

(b)      The Cross-subsidy surcharge shall be determined by the Commission in accordance with the provisions of the Electricity Act, 2003 read with the principles and formula stipulated in the Tariff Policy notified by the Ministry of Power, Govt. of India.

Provided that such cross-subsidy surcharge shall not be levied in case distribution/transmission access is provided to a person who has established a captive generation plant for carrying the electricity to the destination of his own use.

Provided further that the cross-subsidy surcharge for Green Energy Open Access Consumer purchasing green energy, from a generating plant using green energy (renewable energy) sources, shall not be increased, during twelve years from the date of operating of the generating plant using renewable energy sources, by more than fifty percent of the surcharge fixed for the year in which open access is granted.

Provided also that Cross Subsidy Surcharge shall not be applicable in case power produced from a non-fossil fuel-based Municipal Solid Waste-to-Energy or Refuse-Derived Fuel (RDF) plant is supplied to the Green Energy Open Access Consumer.

Provided also that Cross Subsidy Surcharge shall not be applicable in case if green energy is utilized for production of green hydrogen and green ammonia.

(c)      Cross-subsidy surcharge for green energy open access shall be computed in Paisa/kWh and shall be charged on the energy consumed by the consumer under green energy open access.

13.4 Additional Surcharge

(a)      The Green Energy Open Access consumers are required to pay the Additional Surcharge as determined by the Commission with consideration of provisions of the Act, Rules, Regulations and Orders of the Commission from time to time. The Additional Surcharge levied on Green Energy Open Access consumer shall not be more than the per unit fixed cost of power purchase of the distribution licensee concerned.

(b)      The Additional Surcharge shall not be applicable to the Green Energy Open Access consumer to the extent of contract demand being maintained with the distribution licensee.

Provided that in case the quantum of Green Energy Open Access availed by the Green Energy Open Access consumer is more than the contracted demand / sanctioned load with the licensee and no fixed charge or demand charge is being paid or payable for additional quantum, in that case the Additional Surcharge determined by the Commission from time to time as per the Orders of the Commission shall be applicable for such additional quantum availed over the contracted demand / sanctioned load.

Provided that for a person availing Green Energy Open Access, the Additional Surcharge shall be linearly reduced from the value in the year in which Green Energy Open Access was granted so that, if it is continued to be availed by this person, the Additional Surcharge shall get eliminated within four years from the date of grant of Green Energy Open Access.

Provided further that such additional surcharges shall not be levied in case distribution/transmission access is provided to a person who has established a Captive Generation Plant for carrying the electricity to the destination of his own use.

Provided also that Additional Surcharge shall not be applicable in case power produced from a Municipal Solid Waste-to-Energy plant or Refuse-Derived Fuel (RDF) is supplied to the Green Open Access Consumer.

Provided also that Additional Surcharge shall not be applicable in case if green energy is utilized for production of green hydrogen and green ammonia.

Provided further that additional surcharge shall not be applicable in case of electricity produced from offshore wind projects, which are commissioned upto December, 2032 and supplied to the Open Access Consumers.

13.5 Standby charges for drawl of power by Green Energy Open Access consumer from distribution licensee In case the green energy open access consumer is unable to procure/schedule power from the generating sources with whom they have the arrangement to procure power due to outages of generator, transmission systems and the like, standby arrangement shall be provided to Green Energy Open Access consumer by the distribution licensee of the area of its supply and the licensee shall be entitled to collect Standby charges which shall be 125% of the normal tariff of the relevant consumer category in the prevailing rates schedule specified in Tariff Order passed by the Commission.

Provided that the standby charges shall not be applicable, if the green energy open access consumer has given notice, at least a day in advance before closure time of Day Ahead Market on "D - (minus) 1" day, "D being the day of delivery of power for standby arrangement to the distribution licensee.

Provided also that Green Energy Open Access consumers would have the option to arrange standby power from any other source.

Standby charge for green energy open access shall be computed in Paisa/kWh

13.6 Banking Facility and Charges

(a)      Banking facility shall be permitted to the intra state consumers availing Green Energy Open Access.

(b)      Banking facility shall be permitted at least on a monthly/billing period basis on payment of charges to compensate additional cost, if any, to the distribution licensee by the banking.

(c)      For the purpose of these Regulations, the banking means surplus green energy injected in the grid in 15 minutes time block basis and credited with the distribution licensee energy by the Green Energy Open Access consumers and that shall be drawn along with charges to compensate the distribution licensee by the open access consumer.

(d)      The banking of energy shall be evaluated for energy accounting on 15 minutes time block basis. The difference between the injected energy from green energy generator available at consumption point and consumers consumption in same 15 minutes time block basis shall be considered as banked energy.

(e)      The consumption of banked energy Peak Period , Off Peak Period & Normal Hours ( as defined in Time of Day -ToD period specified in the Tariff Orders of the Commission for respective distribution licensees from time to time ) shall be permitted on billing cycle basis in the following manner:

(i)       In the billing cycle, the banked energy, if any, available during peak period , shall be allowed to be utilized during the peak period, Normal hours and the off-peak period by the Green Energy Open Access consumer.

(ii)      The banked energy available during Normal hours shall be utilized only during Normal hours & offpeak period by the green energy open access consumer.

(iii)     The banked energy available during off-peak period shall be utilized only during off-peak period by the green energy open access consumer.

(f)       The permitted quantum of banked energy by the green energy open access consumers shall be at least 30% of total consumption, only electricity directly procured from the distribution licensee shall be considered. Electricity obtained through Open Access arrangement either from a third-party supplier or via captive generation utilizing the distribution network, will be excluded from this calculation.

(g)      When the generator situated in the State or outside the State, connected with the Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS) grid and directly supplying power to consumer(s) situated in the State, who are only connected with Inter-State Transmission System/Grid but not connected with State Transmission Network and/or Distribution System of State, the provisions related to banking facility shall be governed as per applicable CERC Regulations read with MoP Rules.

(h)     The Banking charges shall be adjusted in terms of quantum of the energy banked (kWh) @8% of the energy banked.

(i)       When the Green Energy generator is situated either in State of NCTD or outside the State of NCTD and connected with Inter-State Transmission System/Grid and supplying power to the consumer connected with Intra-State Transmission and/or Distribution System of the State, in that case, the banking facility shall be governed as per the applicable CERC Regulations read with MoP Rules.

(j)       The credit for banked energy shall not be permitted to be carried forward to subsequent billing cycles and shall be adjusted during the same billing cycle in a manner specified under these Regulations.

Provided that the unutilized surplus banked energy shall be considered as lapsed at the end of each billing cycle and the renewable energy generating station shall be entitled to get Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) to the extent of the lapsed banked energy as per applicable Regulations.

13.7 Other Charges and Fees

(a)      Scheduling charges

The Green Energy Open Access consumers shall require to pay scheduling charge of Rs. 2000/ day/approval for Short-Term Open Access and in case of Long-Term Open Access and Medium-Term Open Access the same shall be as per Tariff Order of the Commission with regard to SLDC for respective year.

(b)      Payment Security Mechanism

At the time of submissions of signed Agreement for transmission and/or wheeling of electricity, the Green Energy Open Access consumer seeking open access for Long-Term Open Access, Medium-Term Open Access, shall require to provide an irrevocable Revolving Letter of Credit (LC) or Bank Guarantee (BG) in favour of the agency responsible for collection of various charges specified in these Regulations for the estimated amount of various charges for a period of two months. While in case of Short-Term Open Access, the payment security shall be provided by the Green Energy Open Access consumer in advance for the entire period for which open access is sought. In absence of valid payment security instrument as stated above to be provided by the green energy open access consumer, no open access shall be granted.

Such LC/BG must be available to the State Nodal Agency and/or licensee during the entire period of Green Energy Open Access granted by them and availed by the open access consumer. Failure to provide above mentioned valid financial instruments as payment security to the State Nodal Agency, and/or licensee, the green energy open access granted shall be deemed to be cancelled.

13.8 Relinquishment and its Charges

Option for relinquishment of Under-Utilization or Non-Utilization of open access capacity in intra-State transmission system/distribution systems by Green Energy Open Access consumers shall be subject to the following conditions and charges:

(a)      Long-term access:

A long-term Green Energy Open Access consumer may relinquish the long-term access rights fully or partly before the expiry of the full term of long-term access, by making payment of compensation for the Stranded relinquishment capacity sought, as follows: -

(i)       Long-term Green Energy Open Access consumer who has availed access rights for at least 5 years

(1)     Notice of one (1) year - If such a Green Energy Open Access consumer submits an application to the State Transmission Utility/Transmission Licensee and/or Distribution Licensee at least 1 (one) year prior to the date from which such consumer desires to relinquish the access rights, there shall be no charges.

(2)     Notice of less than one (1) year - If such a Green Energy Open Access consumer submits an application to the State Transmission Utility/Transmission Licensee and/or Distribution Licensee at any time less than a period of 1 (one) year prior to the date from which such consumer desires to relinquish the access rights, such consumer shall pay an amount equal to 66% of the transmission charges and/or wheeling charges for the stranded transmission capacity and/or Distribution Capacity requested for the period falling short of a notice period of one (1) year.

(ii)      Long-term Green Energy Open Access consumer who has not availed access rights for at least 5 (Five) years

4.     Such consumer shall pay an amount equal to 66% of the estimated transmission charges and/or wheeling charges (net present value) for the relinquishment of stranded transmission capacity and/or distribution capacity requested for the period falling short of 5 (five) years of access rights:

Provided that such a Green Energy Open Access consumer shall submit an application to the State Transmission Utility/Transmission Licensee and/or Distribution Licensee at least 1 (one) year prior to the date from which such consumer desires to relinquish the access rights:

Provided further that in case a Green Energy Open Access consumer submits an application for relinquishment of long-term access rights at any time by serving a notice period of less than one year, then such consumer shall pay an amount equal to 66% of the estimated transmission charges and/or wheeling charges(net present value) for the period falling short of a notice period of one (1) year, in addition to 66% of the estimated transmission charges and/or wheeling charges(net present value) for the relinquishment transmission capacity and/or distribution capacity requested for the period falling short of 5 (five) years of access rights.

5.     The discount rate that shall be applicable for computing the net present value as referred to in sub- clause (a)(ii)(1) of clause (13.8) above, shall be as per the discount rate specified for bid evaluation in the Ministry of Powers Guidelines for Determination of Tariff by Bidding Process for Procurement of Power by Distribution Licensees or any related notifications issued by the Central Commission from time to time.

6.     The compensation paid by the long-term Green Energy Open Access consumer for the relinquished transmission capacity and/or distribution capacity shall be used for reducing transmission charges payable by other long-term Open Access consumer and medium-term Open Access consumer in the year in which such compensation payment shall become due in the ratio of transmission charges and/or wheeling charges payable for that year by such long-term consumer and medium-term Green Energy Open Access consumers.

(b)      Medium-Term Green Energy Open Access consumers

A Medium-Term Green Energy Open Access consumer may relinquish rights, fully or partly, by giving at least 30 days prior notice to the State Nodal Agency:

Provided that the Medium-Term Green Energy Open Access consumer relinquishing its rights shall pay applicable transmission charges and/or wheeling charges for the period of relinquishment or 30 days whichever is less.

(c)      Short-Term Green Energy Open Access consumer

(i)       The Short-Term Open Access schedules accepted by the State Nodal Agency in advance or on first- come-first-serve basis may be cancelled or revised downwards on an application to that effect made to the State Nodal Agency by the short-term Green Energy Open Access consumer:

Provided that such cancellation or downward revision of the Short-Term Open Access schedules shall not be effective before expiry of a minimum period of two (2) days:

Provided further that the day on which notice for cancellation or downward revision of schedule is served on the State Nodal Agency and the day from which such cancellation or downward revision is to be implemented, shall be excluded for computing the period of two (2) days.

(ii)      The person seeking cancellation or downward revision of Short-Term Open Access schedule shall pay the transmission charges and/or wheeling charges for the first two (2) days of the period for which the cancellation or downward revision of schedule, as the case may be, in accordance with the schedule originally approved by the State Nodal Agency, and thereafter in accordance with the revised schedule prepared by the State Nodal Agency during the period of such cancellation or downward revision.

(iii)     In case of cancellation, SLDC operating charges specified in these Regulations shall be payable for two (2) days or the period of cancellation in days, whichever is less.

Regulation 16. Curtailment Priority.

In case due to transmission/distribution system constraints or otherwise, it is necessary to curtail the service, the following priority shall be followed:

(a)      The service of short-term open access consumer (other than Green Energy Open Access consumer) shall be curtailed first followed by short-term Green Energy Open Access consumers.

(b)      Next, the service of Medium-Term Open Access consumer (other than Green Energy Open Access consumer) followed by Medium-Term Green Energy Open Access consumer shall be curtailed.

(c)      Next, the service of Long-Term Open Access consumer (other than Green Energy Open Access consumer) followed by Long-Term Green Energy Open Access consumer shall be curtailed.

Provided that within a category, the Green Energy Open Access consumers shall have equal curtailment priority and shall be curtailed on pro-rata basis.

Provided further that distribution licensees shall be curtailed as the last resort.

Regulation 17. Metering.

Green Energy Open Access consumer having contract demand of 1 MW and above shall have to provide four quadrant ABT compliant meters at the generator end, interface points, consumption place which shall conform to the Central Electricity Authority (Installation and Operation of Meters) Regulations, 2006, as amended from time to time.

Provided that the open access consumer who is also consumer of distribution licensee and demanding the green energy open access upto 1 MW shall be permitted by the licensee to install Special Energy Meter capable of energy recording on 15 minutes time block basis, specified by the CEA in its Regulations for fulfillment of the purpose of billing and energy accounting for green energy open access at consumption place as per the discretion of consumer.

Above Meters shall always be maintained in good condition and shall be open for inspection by any person authorized by the State Transmission Utility, Distribution Licensee or the State Load Dispatch Centre.

All the Green Energy Open Access consumers shall abide by the metering standards of CEA.

Regulation 18. Compliance of Grid Code, Distribution Code, Regulations, Orders etc.

Green Energy Open Access consumers shall abide by the State Grid Code, Distribution Code and all other Codes and Standards, DSM Regulations and other Regulations and Orders of the Commission as applicable from time to time.

Regulation 19. Collection and Disbursement of Charges.

The charges in respect of Green Energy Open Access consumers shall be payable directly to the State Nodal Agency and Distribution Licensees in accordance with the terms and conditions of payment as specified in these Regulations. The State Nodal Agency shall disburse the amount received to the appropriate licensees.

Regulation 20. Information System.

(a)      SLDC shall post the following information in a separate web page titled Green Energy Open Access Information and also issue a monthly and annual report containing following information:

(i)       A status report on Long-Term/Medium-Term/Short- Term Green Energy Open Access consumers

(ii)      Floor rate for bidding in case of congestion.

(iii)     Peak load flows on EHV.

(iv)    Information regarding average loss in the transmission system as determined by the licensee on a monthly basis, and distribution loss as determined by the Commission in its respective tariff order.

(b)      The information shall be updated on every change in status.

(c)      All previous reports shall be available in the web-archives.

(d)      The SLDC shall host the above information on its website within one month from the date of notification of these Regulations.

Regulation 21. Reports.

The transmission/distribution licensee shall submit a quarterly report to the Commission or as may be directed by the Commission from time to time in the format prescribed in this regard.

Regulation 22. Dispute Resolution.

No application for green energy open access shall be denied unless the applicant has been given an opportunity of being heard in the matter and all orders denying green energy open access shall be speaking orders by the concerned Nodal Agency.

All disputes and complaints relating to Green Energy Open Access shall be submitted to the concerned State Nodal Agency, i.e. SLDC/STU/Distribution Licensee, as case may be, which shall endeavor to resolve the grievance and shall pass appropriate orders.

Appeal against an Order of the concerned Nodal Agency shall be preferred before the Commission, within a period of thirty days from the date of receipt of order as provided under sub-Rule (4) of Rule 7 of Green Energy Open Access Rules 2022 notified by MoP, GoI.

The Commission shall dispose the Appeal within a period of three months and the Order issued by it shall be binding upon the parties.

Regulation 23. Issue of Orders and Directions.

Subject to the provisions of the Electricity Act, 2003 and these Regulations, the Commission may, from time to time, issue Orders and practice directions with regard to the implementation of these Regulations and procedures to be followed.

Regulation 24. Power to give Directions.

The Commission shall have the power to issue such directions and orders from time to time as considered appropriate for implementation of these Regulations.

Regulation 25. Power to Relax, Amend and Remove Difficulties.

The Commission may, by general or special order, for reasons to be recorded in writing, and after giving an opportunity of hearing to the parties likely to be affected, may relax any of the provisions of these Regulations on its own motion or on an application made before it by an interested person.

The Commission shall have the power to add, vary, alter, suspend, modify, amend, or repeal any provisions of these Regulations from time to time.

If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of these Regulations, the Commission may, by an order, make such provisions, not inconsistent with the provisions of the Electricity Act, 2003 and these Regulations, as may appear to be necessary for removing the difficulty.

Regulation 26. Repeal and Saving.

All previous orders, notifications etc. issues by the commission with respect to the subject matter of these Regulations shall stand repealed in so far as the same are inconsistent with the provisions contained herein. Notwithstanding anything contained hereinabove, the existing consumer(s)/generators including green energy (RE) shall continue to be governed under the existing granted open access and they shall avail the Open Access for Green Energy (RE)/ customer/ licensee/ generator under existing open access Regulations, as per the existing agreements for the period specified in those agreements or Orders of the Commission for the period of granted open access.