State to bear 75 pc debt of MePDCL

SHILLONG: The government will share 75 per cent of the total outstanding debt of Meghalaya Power Distribution Corporation Limited (MePDCL) to facilitate a tripartite agreement involving the Centre, the State and the discom.
Addressing the media after the Cabinet approved the   proposed tripartite agreement, Chief Minister Mukul Sangma said the arrangement would help the State in getting additional and priority funding under some of the initiatives of the Power Ministry and Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.
However, before signing of the agreement, the government was required to take over 75 per cent (Rs 125 crore) of the total outstanding of MePDCL with September 2015 as the cut-off year, said Sangma.
The Cabinet had earlier deliberated on the functioning of MePDCL. For the company to turn around, the Government needs to provide operation funding to the corporation till the time the discom becomes a profit-making entity.
Sangma also said the Cabinet has directed MePDCL to take measures to sell and buy power professionally. The corporation’s aggregate technical commercial loss is 36.5, which means out of 100 units of power, only 63.5 units are available for sale.
Observing that the corporation must improve its billing and collection, Sangma said the Cabinet has also directed the corporation to look at the scope of sourcing power at cheaper rates so that the burden is not passed on to consumers.