REL extends duration of recovery of AEC to 18 months

Mumbai, Oct 6 (UNI) Reliance Energy Ltd (REL) which supplies electricity to Mumbai suburbs has decided to extend the duration of recovery period of Additional Electricity Charges (AEC) to 18 months as against the six month time frame prescribed by MERC (Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission) in its recent order.

On account of this decision of REL, the AEC will now get reduced to 32 paise per unit per month for a period of 18 months as against the 97 paise in a period of six months as prescribed by the MERC order.

REL has communicated this decision to the MERC, a press release issued here today said.

MERC had recently approved the new tariffs for electricity consumers in Mumbai. In case of REL's consumers, the commission had prescribed AEC to be charged for a period a six months over and above the average increase in tariff of 7.5 per cent.

REL supplies power to 25 lakh consumers across its license areas in Mumbai. ''we supply power at low cost by way of maintaining lowest transmission and distribution losses and efficient distribution system. Our cost of distribution is Rs 1.08 as against Rs 1.48 by BEST in its areas,'' the release added.

Maharashtra Congress spokesman Sanjay Nirupam had yesterday written to REL chairman Anil Ambani seeking review of the hike and threatened to launch an agitation. Similarly even Shiv Sena had demanded a roll back. Mr Nirupam said that the electricity charges hike upto 66 per cent was not in the interests of the consumers.

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