GERC Imposes INR 1/kWh Additional Surcharge on Open Access Consumers

The Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission (GERC) has approved an additional surcharge of INR 1 per unit for open access consumers, applicable from 1st October 2025 to 31st March 2026. The surcharge is intended to recover stranded fixed costs that state DISCOMs incur due to consumers sourcing electricity from outside their respective utilities.

The order follows earlier proceedings, including the Commission’s 2014 order on additional surcharge and subsequent appeals by GUVNL and four state-owned DISCOMs. A revised methodology for calculating the surcharge was issued in August 2022, under which DISCOMs are required to submit certified data for each six-month period. Using this methodology, GUVNL submitted data for the period from October 2024 to March 2025, duly certified by the State Load Dispatch Centre (SLDC) and Chartered Accountants.

According to the Commission’s analysis, the total available energy for the six-month period was 89,404 million units (MUs), with 62,157 MUs scheduled for general consumers. After accounting for transmission and distribution losses of 13.37 percent, the energy supplied to general consumers was 53,849 MUs. The stranded generation during the period was 27,247 MUs, with fixed costs paid to conventional energy generators amounting to INR 7,665 crore. The portion of stranded cost attributable to open access consumers was determined to be INR 188 crore, which, after adjusting for network-related costs already paid through demand charges, resulted in a recoverable stranded fixed cost of INR 149 crore. Based on this calculation, the additional surcharge works out to INR 1 per kilowatt-hour.

This surcharge will be applicable to consumers of all four Gujarat state-owned DISCOMs, DGVCL, MGVCL, PGVCL, and UGVCL,  who draw power from sources other than their respective DISCOMs. GERC emphasis  ed that the measure ensures a fair allocation of costs between open access consumers and the general body of electricity consumers, maintaining financial stability for DISCOMs while promoting regulatory transparency and accountability.