Saturday, May 31, 2014

Views on 'Future of Power Distribution Franchisee Model in India' by Dr. Murhari Kele, CE (Mumbai), MSEDCL

Dr. Murhari S. Kele,
Chief Engineer,
MSEDCL, Mumbai.
Power Distribution Franchisee (PDF) model in India saw mixed results across various operating areas so far. While the model saw good momentum after Bhiwandi success story with various states opting for the same, but there is no second success story to further boost the growth of the model.  

pManifold team recently spoke with Dr. Murhari Kele, an industry expert in Power Distribution Franchisee to understand his viewpoints on Future scenario of model. (The views here are personal views, and not to be associated with any company in any forms)

1. Power Distribution Franchisee (PDF), one of the reforms in power distribution utilities has seen ups and downs since its inception in 2007? What is your opinion on privatization of Indian Power Distribution Utilities, and opting Franchisee model as a possible precursor for same (compared with other private models like Delhi PPP model, PPP concessionaire, etc.)?

After inception of The Electricity Act-2003, SEB’s were unbundled in various activities. Power distribution reforms through National Tariff policy & National Electricity policy speaks about the private sector participation in public utilities through various models, like PPP model, franchisee model or full privatisation. These types of operating models are used for turnaround of loss making utilities. Each model is having its own characteristics with risks & challenges. But based on performance of various models for last five years, it shows that private ownership was superior both for PPP & to public ownership. With private ownership there were two models namely Privatisation & second Franchisee. In terms of reduction of system losses the performance of both PPP model in Delhi  & Franchisee model in Bhiwandi, the results were dramatic & comparable. These were obtained not only by better management practices, better surveillance etc but also by providing superior services to customers. 

Thursday, May 29, 2014

New Initiatives / steps taken by UGVCL to improve operational efficiency

The Uttar Gujarat Vij Company Limited (UGVCL), a second largest state discom in Gujarat serving almost 2.9 million customers, has its network spread across an area of 49,950 Sq. Km. It was the rated the second best state power distribution utility, by the Ministry of Power (MoP), with due recognition to its excellent performance in the financial front, and ensuing operational improvement and consumer-friendly practices.

The discom is forefront in taking effective steps to improve operational efficiency and provide better services to customers. Some of the steps taken have been the introduction of system strengthening schemes, expansion of metering coverage, installation of special design transformers that help in peak load management, an insurance policy to compensate for crops destroyed by fire due to electrical line faults and launch of a photo billing system. Through these, the utility has been trying to control its rising aggregate technical and commercial (AT&C) losses but also help in peak load management through the installation of advanced metering infrastructure.

A brief outline on different types of steps taken by the discom are mentioned below:

Operational performance

The utility’s AT&C losses have been increasing since 2010-11, when these stood at 6.63%. The losses touched 10.12% in 2011-12 and 14.07% in 2012-13; with increase in losses being attributed to low metering coverage of agricultural consumers, which only accounts for 36.75% in 2012-13, as compared to 28% in 2008-09, out of the total 100% metering provided. To address this issue, the utility

  • Releasing all new agricultural connections at metered tariffs. In 2013-14, it released 22,278 new agricultural connections and additional load of 201 MW for existing agricultural connections, by installing 3000 km of HIgh Tension (HT) lines, and 55 agricultural feeders, following bifurcation of existing agricultural feeders
  • Launched a state sponsored scheme viz., Jyotigram Yojana, introduced in 2006, which ensures 24×7 three phase quality power, the utility supplies electricity to scattered farm-houses, through feeders with specially designed Jyotigram transformers
  • Installs AB conductor cables in theft prone areas, undertaking mass anti-theft drives and replacement of electromechanical meters with static meters to bring losses below 20% for feeders with higher losses   
  • Ensures timely and accurate billing in order to reduce losses by initiating photo billing system for 0.2 million consumers, sending billing information to consumers by SMS, and installation of radio frequency (RF)-based single phase meters to avoid human intervention in meter reading
  • Ensures energy conservation, cost efficiency and reduction in distribution transformer losses, the utility has introduced special design transformers – pilot advanced transformers (PATs) which provides single-phase power supply to farmers after the eighth hour; and this concept won the utility the 'India Utility Knowledge and Networking Forum (IUKAN) 2014 – Best Practice Award' under the “Innovations and Others” category.
Smart Grid Pilot

UGVCL is one of the utility short listed for smart grid initiative under MoP. The project is being undertaken in two districts – Naroda and Deesa. The Rs. 487.8 million pilot project will cover about 375 substations across these districts. The scope of the project covers AT&C loss reduction, peak load management, developing advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), optimisation of unscheduled interchange charge, reduction in meter reading cost, outage management, load forecasting, demand side management and demand response, introduction of asset management systems and power quality management.

Five consortiums were shortlisted for proof of concept (PoC) in March 2014 for demonstrating their AMI connectivity solutions with 300 meters each. On basis of evaluation of PoC and bid price, the contract for the project will be awarded in September 2014. Few challenges faced by UGVCL at tendering stage includes interoperability issues, limited expertise of Indian companies, and absence of mechanisms to test imported technologies in India.

Future Plans

In a nutshell, the utility’s future plans are aimed at strengthening and upgrading its grid infrastructure through various initiatives like adding distribution lines at 11kV and LT levels, including the smart grid pilot. Loss reduction measures and ensuring consumer satisfaction through quality power supply are its top priorities, going forward. 

Please note: Above is the summary of the article on Power Distribution Franchisee model published in PowerLine magazine, April 2014.

Posted by: Kunjan Bagdia @ pManifold

Monday, May 5, 2014

Suez bagged 3 contracts in India, Water supply project for twin cities in Orissa, An Interview with Mr.Siddarth Agarwal - Founder & CEO Mobicule Technologies and More...


This is the newsletter for the month of May, 2014 sent to mailing list of pManifold sharing Water Distribution Industry opportunities and updates.

We continue to bring you key developments in the Water Distribution Industry.

New Water Project Highlights in April - 2014
  • Suez Environment receives three contracts in india worth Rs. 505 crore more...
  • Orissa Government has taken up urban water supply project for Twin city Bhubaneshwar and Cuttack in PPP Mode more...
Top News Highlights of April - 2014
  • Irrigation Department had flouted norms for KIKVI irrigation Project to improve Water supply in Nashik worth Rs. 273 Crore more…
  • Tamil Nadu Chief Minister claims credit for water desalination project in Chennai more...
  • Privatization of water makes water as an owned commodity rather than a Universal Human Right more…
  • Karnataka Government has 800 Cr to handle drinking water crisis, said Rural Development Minister more…
  • Brickworks gives stable outlook for Nangloi Water Services Project more...
Blogs
  • "Mobility is next big thing in Indian Utilities" - Mr. Siddharth Agarwal, Founder & CEO, Mobicule 
    pManifold recently had discussion with Mr. Agarwal about his vision on mobility and Indian Utilities. Read 
    more..
  • Do Pro-Poor Policies Increase Water Coverage? more...
  • A Lecture on PPP in US Water Sector & Helping Municipalities with complexity more...
Upcoming Water Events
  • Aquatech India - 2014,6 to 8 May, New Delhi more...
  • 2nd International Conference on Waste Water Technology for Greening India 2014, 2nd June, Pune more..
  • WaterTech India - 2014, 10 to 12 September, New Delhi more...

pManifold's Utility Practice details can be viewed here. Please contact me at 91 9970 46 2580 or at mohammad.sufiyan@pmanifold.com, if you would like to know more about us.
pManifold's services in Utility ranges from Go-to-Market Research & Advisory, Technical Feasibility, Financial Bid Advisory, Takeover Advisory, Analytics, Customer Intelligence & Satisfaction Monitoring, process improvement consulting, organizing stakeholder conferences and others.

JSEB Franchisee bid date extension, DF model way forward, PQ and loss reduction interconnection - Power Distribution Newsletter, May 2014

This is the newsletter for the month of May, 2014 sent to mailing list of pManifold sharing Power Distribution Industry opportunities and updates.

We continue to bring you key developments in the Power Distribution Industry.
Opportunities
·    Bid submission date for JSEB floated tenders for appointment of Collection based Rural Distribution Franchisee has been again extended until 19th May, 2014. (See RFPDFA)
Key Updates from existing operators
·    SNDL's meter replacement drive is nearing completion and has resulted in reduction of distribution losses. In addition, the company has invested over Rs. 100 Cr. for augmenting the infrastructure. (Read here)
·    Recognizing operational excellence of ground staffs like engineers, lineman, substation, etc., Jaipur discoms to incorporate their views and suggestions in speeding up the consumer grievance Redressal mechanism and other services. (Read here)

Monday, April 28, 2014

Mobility solutions from Mobicule for Utilities in India

Mr. Siddharth Agarwal, Founder
& CEO, Mobicule
The global market has experienced a paradigm shift with the introduction of SMAC technologies. The letter ‘M’ which stands for 'Mobility’ has changed the opinion of undertaking business and has been dominating in the minds of technocrats, businessmen, and the investors. It does not surprise us to perceive industries shifting to mobile devices where India accounts more than 900 million subscriber base. Catching with the trend various innovative mobile apps has been developed leading to interesting business case. It is believed that mobile app download will grow exponentially and if this is the scenario, one of the biggest beneficiary of these technologies can be Indian utilities aiming to improve their efficiency and streamlining their operation through more focused customer engagement.

pManifold team recently spoke to Mr. Siddharth Agarwal, Founder & CEO, Mobicule to understand how the mobility solution is changing the landscape of Indian utility markets. The below shared are author's personal views and not to be associated with any of their company's association.

Thursday, April 24, 2014

What is PQ? Whose responsibility is it?

India and most developing countries continue to struggle for 24x7 power supply, good Power Quality (PQ) environment, and Energy Efficient (EE) economy. See APQI earlier blog that tries to quantify economic impact from poor PQ environment - Are developing economies at risk due to power quality issues and challenges?

Another follow-up question will be WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR MAINTAINING GOOD POWER QUALITY? Answer to this is usually divided and depends upon whom we pose this question. Network Operator will blame his end-customers, Device Manufacturer will blame both the Network Operator and the end-customer, and end-customer usually has not much awareness, and believe that its supply problem from Network Operator.

In addition to above 3 key stakeholders, there are others like - Designers, Commissioning Engineers and Maintenance Engineers that also plays role in sustaining good PQ environment.Commissioning Engineer play the role in ensuring the quality of installation based on certain design standards. Good installation is one of the necessities to maintain power quality during operations and to minimize voltage drop, sparking, overheating, etc. Maintenance engineers are subsequently responsible for preventing any glitches in operations which can result in power quality issue. For ex. loose connections lead to sparking;poor quality of wires results in voltage drops at customers premise, etc.

Monday, April 21, 2014

Evolving Distribution Franchisee Model across states

The Ministry of Power’s financial restructuring plan has made the introduction of private participation in distribution as one of the mandatory conditions for availing the benefits of scheme (as a result of high AT&C losses, low IT involvement and huge financial losses). Whilst State Governments’ (except Delhi and Odisha) have not undertaken privatisation of Discoms, Distribution Franchisee (DF) model has emerged as one of the attractive options to involve private players for enhancing distribution operations. The success of Torrent Power as a DF player in Bhiwandi in Maharashtra has fuelled the other states to adopt this model. Other operational areas include Agra (UP), Nagpur (Maharashtra), Aurangabad (Maharashtra), Jalgaon (Maharashtra) and Sagar (MP).

Saturday, April 12, 2014

JICA approves loan of Rs.960 Cr. for Agra, SPML bagged Rs. 721 Cr. project in Gujarat and Bihar, more...


This is a newsletter for the month of April, 2014 sent to mailing list of pManifold sharing Water Distribution industry opportunities and updates.

We continue to share Water Distribution Utility updates for broader community development. Some of them are mentioned below and hope you find it useful. 

New Water Project Highlights in March - 2014
  • JICA approves loan of Rs.960 Cr. for Agra Water Project more...
  • SPML Infra has bagged projects worth Rs. 721 Cr. in Gujarat and Bihar more...
  • HCC, GVPR Engineers JV bags Rs. 904 Cr. project in Karnataka more...
  • 24x7 Metered Water Supply move begins at Ahmedabad more...
  • Steel Authority of India & CII Triveni Water Institute signs MOU on Ensuring Water Efficiency more...
Articles of March - 2014
  • Doom predicted for India in 2050 more..
  • CSR spend on water is a big challenge more...
  • Research and Markets: The Wastewater Treatment Plants Market in India is Expected to Grow more...
Upcoming Water Events
  • 2nd International Conference on Waste Water Technology for Greening India 2014 (ICWWTGI-2014) - 2nd June, Pune - Maharashtra more..
Blogs
  • Peeking into the challenges in managing waste water in the tier-2/3 cities in India more..
  • SCADA system to better monitor India city's water distribution network more..
Case Studies
  • If you are prospecting to enter in Water Utilities as Operator or Service Provider or Vendor - learn some best practices through case studies from pManifold (Water Utility Case Studies).
IUKAN 2014 - POST EVENT UPDATES
The 2nd Annual IUKAN Conference was conducted at New Delhi on 13th Feb, 2014 at Le Meridien. The conference was attended by 250+ Thought Leaders and Delegates.
The conference proceedings, pictures and participating companies details can be seen at http://www.iukan.in/conference-2014/proceedings-post-event/
Awards recipients in their respective categories that broadly saw participation of 65+ nominations from 35+ companies across 8 categories and 2 tracks.

pManifold's Utility Practice can be viewed here, please contact me at +91 99704-62580 or at mohammad.sufiyan@pmanifold.com, if you would like to know more about us.  
pManifold's services in Utility ranges from Go-to-Market Research & Advisory, Technical Feasibility, Financial Bid Advisory, Takeover Advisory, Analytics, Customer Intelligence & Satisfaction Monitoring, process improvement consulting, organizing stakeholder conferences and others.

Monday, April 7, 2014

ARE DEVELOPING ECONOMIES AT RISK DUE TO POWER QUALITY ISSUES AND CHALLENGES?

Asia Power Quality Initiative (APQI) aims to create and build awareness on issues related to Power Quality (PQ). APQI was 'Power Quality' partner to IUKAN 2014 earlier this year. The group continues spreading the essential message of PQ to various stakeholders, helping businesses and industries with improved understanding and insights.

Recently, they published a very interesting blog on 'ARE DEVELOPING ECONOMIES AT RISK DUE TO POWER QUALITY ISSUES AND CHALLENGES?'.

This blog underlines the importance of PQ in today's fast growing power electronics and IT driven businesses. Developing economies like India continue to struggle for 24x7 power supply and are lagging in terms of their PQ expectations though striving hard for energy efficient economy. The blog focuses on the associated economic impact due to PQ issues and challenges borne by developing countries. Can we afford to ignore that risk by remaining ignorant!

For detailed blog, please see following link: http://www.apqi.org/blog/are-developing-economies-at-risk-due-to-power-quality-issues-and-challenges.html

Posted by: Kunjan Bagdia @ pManifold

Saturday, April 5, 2014

JSEB Franchisee bid submission date extended, Mr. Ajoy Mehta's Vision Session at IUKAN 2014 - Power Distribution Newsletter, April 2014

This is a newsletter for the month of April, 2014 sent to mailing list of pManifold sharing Power Distribution industry opportunities and updates.

We continue to share Power Distribution Utility updates for broader community development. Some of them are mentioned below and hope you find it useful. 


Existing Opportunities
  • Last date of bid submission for Jharkhand State Electricity Board's (JSEB) floated tenders for appointment of Collection based Distribution Franchisee model in its 10 rural sub-division has been extended by 12th April, 2014. (Readhere
Roll Outs from Utilities 
  • In order to ensure reliable power supply and to reduce the breakdown and voltage fluctuation, Spanco Nagpur Discom Limited (SNDL) to invest Rs. 30 Cr. to augment its power network. (Read here)
  • An integrated project of Automated Demand Response (ADR) and AMI are conceptualized together by TPDDL to improve the power reliability and to manage peak power demand more optimally. (Read here