By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Oct 18: The state government is trying to bail out the Meghalaya Power Distribution Corporation Limited (MePDCL) from a financial crisis once again. The corporation has run up dues worth more than Rs 565 crore which the state government has committed to pay through instalments.
Since signing a power purchase agreement with the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) in 2007, the dues of the MePDCL accumulated to almost Rs 488 crore.
The government later paid 50% of the dues to NTPC through the Atmanirbhar loan but felt that the central PSU was charging quite high.
The government moved the court after the NTPC declined to reduce the charges, but the judgement was favourable.
Power Minister AT Mondal said the remaining amount of Rs 244 crore along with fixed charges, late payment and penalties accumulated to about Rs 665 crore.
“Had the situation continued, the dues would have touched Rs 1,000 crore and it would have become a big burden on the MePDCL and the government. Hence, we began negotiating with the NTPC,” he said.
After negotiations, the NTPC agreed to reduce the due amount to Rs 565 crore and asked the government to clear it in 20 instalments.
The MePDCL, already caught in a financial crisis, approached the state government for a solution to the funding problem. The government decided to allocate the funds for the Rs 565-crore payment.
“We will discuss with the NTPC the possibility of more relaxations such as clearing the dues in 30 instalments,” Mondal said.