MUMBAI: Billionaire Gautam Adani’s foray into power distribution has begun with a social media offensive, with the Congress party and some consumers accusing his company of increasing the bill sharply in October, but the company said it’s facing “malicious” propaganda because the regulator had increased tariffs based on a petition filed before it took over the circle and that electricity consumption had risen 18% during the period.
Several
Mumbai residents under the
Adani Electricity circle – which was earlier controlled by Anil Ambani-led
Reliance Infrastructure — have said that there has been a spike in their bills in October. Mumbai’s Congress chief Sanjay Nirupam has accused the company of “looting” consumers, with banners and hoardings across the city alleging a 50% increase in power charges and faulty meter reading.
“There has been an undue perception created around Adani Electricity’s power billing by a senior political party leader through various platforms using irresponsible words like ‘loot’, little realising that this implies to rates which are decided by an independent quasi-judicial body MERC, after following the due process of public hearing. The statements that have been made are totally irresponsible, false, incorrect, distorted, carry innuendos and level false and malicious insinuations,” Adani said in a response to ET’s query.
Adani Electricity started billing Mumbai consumers from September, after it completed acquisition of the Mumbai power distribution business from Reliance Infrastructure and has faced hiccups in the first two billing cycles. Some Adani consumers witnessed an increase in bills for September, which the company attributed to its inability to read meters in some areas due to “internal agitation on certain past issues”, with the assurance to pass on the credit after meter reading is done. Two consumers confirmed to ET that they received the credit in the subsequent bill.
But some consumers complained on social media that bills were substantially higher in October. Some said it had doubled from the previous month, but Adani dismissed this as seasonal variations, as consumption traditionally rises in October, which is one of the hottest months of the city due to rising temperature after the monsoon withdraws. The company attributed the increase to revised regulatorapproved tariff and an 18% average increase in consumption in October against September.
Electricity distribution is a regulated business in India with prices being determined by the regulator after taking all fixed and variable costs under considerations. In an order dated September 12, MERC approved a revision of tariff for the state’s power distribution companies, the state run — Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking and Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Co, and private distributors Tata Power Company and Reliance Infrastructure’s energy business, which is now known as Adani Electricity.