New Discom audit norms will curb T&D loss

You cannot manage what you cannot measure, goes a clichéd but wise business adage. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency’s (BEE’s) latest regulations have the potential to ensure a better measurement and tracking of the transmission and distribution (T&D) losses of the electricity distribution companies (Discoms).

A number of recent policies and schemes have focussed on reducing Discoms’ aggregate technical and commercial (AT&C) losses, of which T&D losses form a major part. However, despite the guidelines by the Central Electricity Authority, different Discoms use different methods to calculate AT&C losses without necessarily stating the underlying assumptions and data.

This difference can be as high as four percentage points (the average reported AT&C losses are about 22-25 per cent) making measurement and tracking of AT&C losses difficult. BEE’s new energy audit regulations can change this situation.

Last year, BEE had notified all the Discoms as ‘Designated Consumers’ under the Energy Conservation Act, 2001 requiring them to conduct periodic energy audits and undertake energy conservation measures.