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Gridco, AES locked in tussle over dues

Jatindra Dash in Bhubaneswar

The state-owned Grid Corporation of Orissa and US power major AES Corporation are locked in a battle over recovery of dues from each other.

Last fortnight Gridco, the nodal power agency in the state, gave permission to AES to sell its majority stake in the Central Electricity Supply Company, nearly four months after the US power major expressed its desire to pull out from Cesco.

Gridco, however, attached a rider, saying AES must clear all its liabilities worth Rs 4.5 billion before walking out of Cesco.

Gridco purchases power from the producers and sells it to the four private distributors -- Cesco being one of them -- in each of which it has 49 per cent stake. It also has stakes in the generation companies, both public and private, in the state.

Relations between Gridco and AES soured over payment disputes in May when the latter shut down the Banharpali thermal power plant, in Jharsuguda district, for a week demanding payment of Rs.14 billion as the cost of energy sold to the former.

But Gridco slapped a counter demand on AES, saying it must pay up Cesco's dues of Rs 2.5 billion by virtue of being the majority stakeholder in that company.

Gridco also demanded a compensation of Rs 270 million for the power plant's closure by AES. It has 51 per cent stake in the Banharpali plant.

In both Cesco and the Banharpali power plant, the management control rests with AES.

A senior energy department official told IANS that the US firm was now pressuring the state government to help recover its dues from Gridco. For that reason alone, AES had not formally announced its withdrawal from Cesco.

Gridco, on its part, has gone to the Orissa Electricity Regulatory Commission for arbitration over its dues. The regulator has entrusted the management of Cesco to an advisory council with Gridco officials on it.

But AES managing director Roberto Podesta has accused OERC of bias towards Gridco. "The OERC is partial. It cannot appoint an administrator for Cesco when we have not yet quit," he said.

Indo-Asian News Service

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