SHILLONG: Weighed down by a Rs 1345-crore burden of debt to generating companies (gencos), the Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MeECL) has moved the state government to avail of the loan facility announced last month by the Centre for electricity distribution companies (discoms) as part of its stimulus package to revive the country’s pandemic-ravaged economy.
The matter is now in the hands of the state Finance department.
The MeECL had written to the state government on May 19, within a week of the Centre announcing a Rs 90,000-crore liquidity injection into fund-starved discoms in the country to enable them to pay off their dues to the gencos.
Chairman-cum-managing director of MeECL Aldealyne Nikhla told The Shillong Times that the loan would be repayable over 10 years with a three-year moratorium – repayment will start after three years—with the government standing guarantee.
“We have outstanding of Rs 1,345 crore”, she said. Of this, Rs 651.95 crore is owed to Neepco alone.
The MeECL had earlier approached REC Limited (erstwhile Rural Electrification Corporation Limited) in April for a Rs 240-crore loan to meet obligatory payments. “Nothing has come of that yet”, she said.
Commissioner and Secretary to Finance department Vijay Kumar said process was under way to not only avail of loan for MeECL but also other help offered in the stimulus package.
“We are doing our best and will ask the Centre for whatever we are eligible under the stimulus package”, he said.
The overall economic revival package announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was to the tune of Rs 20 lakh crore touching several sectors which have suffered significantly due to the pandemic.
Meanwhile, reports quoting CRISIL Ratings have said that discoms will end up owing lenders Rs 4.5 lakh crore by the end of 2020-21 with power demand weak and cash losses high amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
At the time when the Centre announced – May 13 — the bailout package for discoms, they owed around Rs 94,000 to gencos.
CRISIL Ratings said while the Rs 90,000 crore liquidity package offers a breather, structural reforms have become critical to sustainability of discoms.
According to it, presently, only one in five discoms in the country is capable of servicing debt through own cash flows and budgeted subsidies.