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Vaayu Renewable Power (Mevasa) Non-public Restricted (VREMPL) has sought reduction from the Central Electrical energy Regulatory Fee (CERC) below the Electrical energy Act, 2003, and associated rules. The corporate filed a petition to relinquish its Stage-II Connectivity for a 300 MW Wind Farm Mission in Dharampur, Jamnagar, Gujarat, citing occasions which have made the mission unimaginable to execute.
Within the petition, VREMPL defined that it utilized for Stage-I and Stage-II Connectivity in 2018, and the Respondent granted Stage-I Connectivity for the Wind Farm Mission. Nevertheless, as a consequence of unexpected occasions corresponding to modifications in land insurance policies in Gujarat, restrictions imposed by the federal government, and delays within the development of the transmission infrastructure, VREMPL confronted vital challenges in attaining monetary closure and mission execution.
The corporate highlighted that the COVID-19 pandemic additional impacted the timeline, and the transmission infrastructure’s completion was unsure. Moreover, the Photo voltaic Power Company of India (SECI) issued tips in December 2020 that prevented initiatives, together with VREMPL’s, from collaborating in aggressive bidding.
Regardless of VREMPL’s efforts to hunt an extension and clarify the hindrances confronted, the Respondent allegedly blamed the corporate for non-compliance, main to the current scenario the place the mission has develop into impractical to pursue.
VREMPL argued that the circumstances transcend a mere try to exit the mission; the muse of the settlement has been eroded as a consequence of exterior components. The corporate prompt reallocating the allotted bay to different customers, corresponding to Reliance Industries Restricted (RIL), which had expressed curiosity within the connectivity.
In the course of the listening to, the Fee acknowledged the petition and instructed the Energy Grid Company of India Restricted (PGCIL) to not take coercive measures in opposition to VREMPL till additional discover.
In response, PGCIL outlined the necessary milestones for connectivity grantees and emphasised that failure to satisfy these milestones might result in revocation of Stage-II Connectivity. PGCIL argued that VREMPL didn’t contemplate the change in land allotment coverage as a pressure majeure occasion when in search of an extension, and the problem was already settled in a earlier order.
PGCIL additionally addressed VREMPL’s contentions concerning the allocation of bays to different customers, stating that after connectivity is granted, the grantee can’t depend on different customers for bay utilization. Moreover, PGCIL famous that no motion had been initiated for revocation or financial institution assure invocation at that time.
The Fee, after contemplating the submissions, concluded that VREMPL failed to realize the required milestones. Nevertheless, it famous that no motion for revocation or financial institution assure invocation had been initiated by PGCIL. The Fee directed PGCIL to take applicable motion inside 15 days in accordance with the Revised Process issued in February 2021.
In essence, the Fee’s choice implies that VREMPL’s Stage-II Connectivity will likely be revoked, and the related financial institution assure will likely be encashed, as per the provisions of the Revised Process. The Fee’s choice aligns with the regulatory framework and emphasizes the significance of assembly connectivity milestones for renewable vitality initiatives.
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