Meghalaya dodged a further bout of load shedding after the Shillong Commercial Court stayed a new attempt by the NTPC (National Thermal Power Corporation) to limit the state’s power supply, it was revealed today.
In a release, Power Minister James Sangma informed that, still chasing after dues it feels it is owed from an old power purchase agreement (PPA), the NTPC, on May 4, intimated the Meghalaya Energy Corporation Ltd (MeECL) that it would once again begin limiting the supply of electricity to the state from May 11.
Bearing in mind that Meghalaya is undergoing a massive increase in Covid-19 cases, such a decision would be “disastrous and would seriously impact the fight” against the disease, Sangma said.
The Meghalaya government then approached the court, which stayed the NTPC’s notice today.
The issue at hand concerns an agreement for Meghalaya to buy up a set amount of electricity at a fixed price from the NTPC. However, the price the state had to pay was well above market levels, prompting it to drop the agreement, though the NTPC said that Meghalaya is still liable to pay certain dues.
“In the opinion of the state government, none of the amounts demanded by NTPC are due and payable to it and the continuation of the PPA is not warranted,” Sangma said.
