Report by Kamgar Ekta Committee (KEC) correspondent
The Andhra Pradesh government has decided to allow private companies with more than 300 megawatt (MW) power requirement to apply for a discom licence. With discom licences, private companies will be able to directly procure electricity from power-generating units through power purchase agreements. The state discom will thus soon lose the business of all large existing and new consumers.
Private licensees will not need to spend capital to set up their own network. They will be granted open access to the AP Transmission Company (APTRANSCO) network on payment of charges.
The state government’s decision to give distribution licence to private companies is outright privatisation of electricity distribution in the name of meeting the power needs of large consumers. It will worsen the financial health of the state discom. It will also lead to fall in service to people of the state.
IT, pharmaceutical, and steel companies in the state have been pushing for discom licences to meet their requirements for “reliable and uninterrupted power”. Large data centre players like Adani with Google, Brookfield with Reliance, and Meta and Sify Technologies will immediately benefit from this decision of the Andhra Pradesh government. It will allow large power producers like Adani to directly supply power its large data centre, bypassing the state discom.
As private companies will be using state’s grid infrastructure to procure power from generating companies, the justification of the need of ““reliable and uninterrupted power” is just an excuse to push privatisation. The reliability of power supply depends on the grid infrastructure, which will remain the same as today.
In Andhra Pradesh, power distribution is presently carried out by three state-owned discoms—AP Central Power Distribution Company Ltd, AP Eastern Power Distribution Company Ltd, and AP Southern Power Distribution Company Ltd.
The state government’s decision has been welcomed by capitalists. They want similar policy to be adopted by other state governments, too.
Big monopolies have been pushing for privatisation of power distribution through various means with the help of the central and state governments. Due to the opposition of workers and consumers, newer and newer ways of privatisation of discoms are being proposed and flimsy justifications are given.
The proposal of Andhra Pradesh government will lead ultimately to its discom becoming sick. The privatisation will then be presented as a necessity due to its poor financial condition. Power workers and consumers will have to once again unite to stop this anti-people, anti-worker step.