Section 3 in Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Terms and Conditions of Tariff) Regulations, 2014

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Section 3 in Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Terms and Conditions of Tariff) Regulations, 2014

3. Definitions and Interpretations.

- In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires-

(1)'Act' means the Electricity Act, 2003 (36 of 2003);

(2)'Additional Capitalisation' means the capital expenditure incurred, or projected to be incurred after the date of commercial operation of the project and admitted by the Commission after prudence check, in accordance with provisions of Regulation 14 of these regulations;

(3)'Auxiliary Energy Consumption' or 'AUX' in relation to a period in case of a generating station means the quantum of energy consumed by auxiliary equipment of the generating station, such as the equipment being used for the purpose of operating plant and machinery including switchyard of the generating station and the transformer losses within the generating station, expressed as a percentage of the sum of gross energy generated at the generator terminals of all the units of the generating station:Provided that auxiliary energy consumption shall not include energy consumed for supply of power to housing colony and other facilities at the generating station and the power consumed for construction works at the generating station;

(4)'Auditor' means an auditor appointed by a generating company or a transmission licensee, as the case may be, in accordance with the provisions of sections 224, 233B and 619 of the Companies Act, 1956 (1 of 1956)], as amended from time to time or Chapter X of the Companies Act, 2013 (18 of 2013) or any other law for the time being in force;

(5)'Bank Rate' means the base rate of interest as specified by the State Bank of India from time to time or any replacement thereof for the time being in effect plus 350 basis points;

(6)'Beneficiary' in relation to a generating station covered under clauses (a) and (b) of sub-section 1 of section 79 of the Act, means a distribution licensee who is purchasing electricity generated at such generating station through a Power Purchase Agreement either directly or through a trading licensee on payment of fixed charges and by scheduling in accordance with the Grid Code:Provided that where the distribution licensee is procuring power through a trading licensee, the arrangement should be secured through back to back power purchase agreement and power sale agreement:Provided further that beneficiary shall also include any person who has allocation in inter State Generating Stations;

(7)'Block' in relation to a combined cycle thermal generating station includes combustion turbine-generator, associated waste heat recovery boiler, connected steam turbine-generator and auxiliaries;

(8)'Capital Cost' means the capital cost as determined in accordance with Regulation 9 of these regulations;

(9)'Change in Law' means occurrence of any of the following events:

(a)enactment, bringing into effect or promulgation of any new Indian law; or

(b)adoption, amendment, modification, repeal or re-enactment of any existing Indian law; or

(c)change in interpretation or application of any Indian law by a competent court, Tribunal or Indian Governmental Instrumentality which is the final authority under law for such interpretation or application; or

(d)change by any competent statutory authority in any condition or covenant of any consent or clearances or approval or licence available or obtained for the project; or

(e)coming into force or change in any bilateral or multilateral agreement/treaty between the Government of India and any other Sovereign Government having implication for the generating station or the transmission system regulated under these Regulations.

(10)'Commission' means the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission referred to in sub-section (1) of section 76 of the Act;

(11)'Communication System' includes communication system of Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd. covered under Unified Load Dispatch and Communication (ULD&C) scheme, SCADA, Wide Area Measurement (WAMS), Fibre Optic Communication system, Remote Terminal Unit, Private Automatic Branch Exchange, Radio Communication System and auxiliary power supply system etc. used for managing inter-state transmission of electricity;

(12)'Competitive Bidding' means a transparent process for procurement of equipment, services and works in which bids are invited by the project developer by open advertisement covering the scope and specifications of the equipment, services and works required for the project, and the terms and conditions of the proposed contract as well as the criteria by which bids shall be evaluated, and shall include domestic competitive bidding and international competitive bidding;

(13)'Cut-off Date' means 31st March of the year closing after two years of the year of commercial operation of whole or part of the project, and in case the whole or part of the project is declared under commercial operation in the last quarter of a year, the cutoff date shall be 31st March of the year closing after three years of the year of commercial operation:Provided that the cut-off date may be extended by the Commission if it is proved on the basis of documentary evidence that the capitalisation could not be made within the cut-off date for reasons beyond the control of the project developer;

(14)'Date of Commercial Operation' or 'COD' shall have the same meaning as defined in Regulation 4 of these regulations;

(15)'Declared Capacity' or 'DC' in relation to a generating station means, the capability to deliver ex-bus electricity in MW declared by such generating station in relation to any time-block of the day as defined in the Grid Code or whole of the day, duly taking into account the availability of fuel or water, and subject to further qualification in the relevant regulation;

(16)'De-capitalisation' for the purpose of the tariff under these regulations, means reduction in Gross Fixed Assets of the project corresponding to the removal/deletion of assets as admitted by the Commission;

(17)'De-Commissioning' means removal from service of a generating station or a unit thereof or transmission system including communication system or element thereof, after it is certified by the Central Electricity Authority or any other authorized agency, either on its own or on an application made by the project developer or the beneficiaries or both, that the project cannot be operated due to non performance of the assets on account of technological obsolescence or uneconomic operation or a combination of these factors;

(18)'Design Energy' means the quantum of energy which can be generated in a 90% dependable year with 95% installed capacity of the hydro generating station;

(19)'Day' means a calendar day consisting of 24 hours period starting at 0000 hour;

(20)'Designated ISTS Customers' or 'DICs' shall have the same meaning as defined in Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Sharing of Inter State Transmission Charges and Losses) Regulations, 2010 as amended from time to time or subsequent reenactment thereof;

(21)'Element' in respect of a transmission system shall mean an asset which has been distinctively defined under the scope of the project in the Investment Approval;

(22)'Existing Project' means a project which has been declared under commercial operation on a date prior to 1.4.2014;

(23)'Expenditure Incurred' means the fund, whether the equity or debt or both, actually deployed and paid in cash or cash equivalent, for creation or acquisition of a useful asset and does not include commitments or liabilities for which no payment has been released;

(24)'Extended Life' means the life of a generating station or unit thereof or transmission system or element thereof beyond the period of useful life, as may be determined by the Commission on case to case basis;

(25)'Force Majeure' for the purpose of these regulations means the event or circumstance or combination of events or circumstances including those stated below which partly or fully prevents the generating company or transmission licensee to complete the project within the time specified in the Investment Approval, and only if such events or circumstances are not within the control the generating company or transmission licensee and could not have been avoided, had the generating company or transmission licensee taken reasonable care or complied with prudent utility practices:

(a)Act of God including lightning, drought, fire and explosion, earthquake, volcanic eruption, landslide, flood, cyclone, typhoon, tornado, geological surprises, or exceptionally adverse weather conditions which are in excess of the statistical measures for the last hundred years; or

(b)Any act of war, invasion, armed conflict or act of foreign enemy, blockade, embargo, revolution, riot, insurrection, terrorist or military action; or

(c)Industry wide strikes and labour disturbances having a nationwide impact in India;

(26)'Generating Unit' in relation to a thermal generating station (other than combined cycle thermal generating station) means steam generator, turbine-generator and auxiliaries, or in relation to a combined cycle thermal generating station, means turbine-generator and auxiliaries; and in relation to a hydro generating station means turbine-generator and its auxiliaries;

(27)'Grid Code' means the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Indian Electricity Grid Code) Regulations, 2010 as amended from time to time or subsequent re-enactment thereof;

(28)'Gross Calorific Value' or 'GCV' in relation to a thermal generating station means the heat produced in kCal by complete combustion of one kilogram of solid fuel or one litre of liquid fuel or one standard cubic meter of gaseous fuel, as the case may be;

(29)'Gross Station Heat Rate' or 'GHR' means the heat energy input in kCal required to generate one kWh of electrical energy at generator terminals of a thermal generating station;

(30)'Generating Station' means any station for generating electricity, including any building and plant with step-up transformer, switch-gear, switch yard, cables or other appurtenant equipment, if any, used for that purpose and the site thereof; a site intended to be used for a generating station, and any building used for housing the operating staff of a generating station, and where electricity is generated by water-power, includes penstocks, head and tail works, main and regulating reservoirs, dams and other hydraulic works, but does not in any case include any sub-station;

(31)'Indian Governmental Instrumentality' means the Government of India, Governments of State (where the project is located) and any ministry or department or board or agency or other regulatory or quasi judicial authority controlled by Government of India or Government of State, where the project is located.

(32)'Infirm Power' means electricity injected into the grid prior to the commercial operation of a unit or block of the generating station in accordance with Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Grant of Connectivity, Long-term Access and Medium-term Open Access in inter-State Transmission and related matters) Regulations, 2009 as amended from time to time;

(33)'Installed Capacity' or 'IC' means the summation of the name plate capacities of all the units of the generating station or the capacity of the generating station reckoned at the generator terminals, as may be approved by the Commission from time to time;

(34)'Implementation Agreement' means the agreement, contract or memorandum of understanding, or any such covenant, entered into (i) between transmission licensee and generating station or (ii) between transmission licensee and developer of the associated transmission system for the execution of project in coordinated manner;

(35)'Inter-State Generating Station' or 'ISGS' has the meaning as assigned in the Grid Code;

(36)'Investment Approval' means approval by the Board of the generating company or the transmission licensee or Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) or any other competent authority conveying administrative sanction for the project including funding of the project and the timeline for the implementation of the project.Provided that the date of Investment Approval shall reckon from the date of the resolution/minutes of the Board/approval by competent authority.

(37)'Kilowatt-Hour' or 'kWh' means a unit of electrical energy, measured in one kilowatt or one thousand watts of power produced or consumed over a period of one hour;

(38)'Long-Term Transmission Customer' means a person having a long term transmission service agreement with the transmission licensee including deemed transmission licensee for use of inter-State transmission system by paying transmission charges and the term may be used interchangeably with the term Designated ISTS Customers (DICs);

(39)'Maximum Continuous Rating' or 'MCR' in relation to a generating unit of the thermal generating station means the maximum continuous output at the generator terminals, guaranteed by the manufacturer at rated parameters, and in relation to a block of a combined cycle thermal generating station means the maximum continuous output at the generator terminals, guaranteed by the manufacturer with water or steam injection (if applicable) and corrected to 50 Hz grid frequency and specified site conditions;

(40)'New Project' means the project achieving COD or anticipated to be achieving COD on or after 1.4.2014;

(41)'Normative Annual Plant Availability Factor' or 'NAPAF' in relation to a generating station means the availability factor as specified in Regulation 36 and 37 of these regulations for thermal generating station and hydro generating station respectively;

(42)'Operation and Maintenance Expenses' or 'O&M expenses' means the expenditure incurred for operation and maintenance of the project, or part thereof, and includes the expenditure on manpower, repairs, maintenance spares, consumables, insurance and overheads but excludes fuel expenses and water charges;

(43)'Original Project Cost' means the capital expenditure incurred by the generating company or the transmission licensee, as the case may be, within the original scope of the project up to the cut-off date as admitted by the Commission;

(44)'Plant Availability Factor' or '(PAF)' in relation to a generating station for any period means the average of the daily declared capacities (DCs) for all the days during the period expressed as a percentage of the installed capacity in MW less the normative auxiliary energy consumption;

(45)'Plant Load Factor' or '(PLF)' in relation to thermal generating station or unit for a given period means the total sent out energy corresponding to scheduled generation during the period, expressed as a percentage of sent out energy corresponding to installed capacity in that period and shall be computed in accordance with the following formula:

N|-

PLF = 10000 x| ∑SGi/ {N x IC X (100 - AUXn)}%|-

i=1

Where,IC = Installed Capacity of the generating station or unit in MW,SGi = Scheduled Generation in MW for the ith time block of the period,N = Number of time blocks during the period, andAUXn = Normative Auxiliary Energy Consumption as a percentage of gross energy generation;

(46)'Project' means a generating station or a transmission system including communication system, as the case may be, and in case of a hydro generating station includes all components of generating facility such as dam, intake water conductor system, power generating station and generating units of the scheme, as apportioned to power generation and in case of thermal generating stations does not include mining if it is a pit head project and dedicated captive coal mine;

(47)'Procedure Regulations' means the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Procedure for making of application for determination of tariff, publication of the application and other related matters) Regulations, 2004, as amended from time to time or any statutory re-enactment thereof;

(48)'Prudence Check' means scrutiny of reasonableness of capital expenditure incurred or proposed to be incurred, financing plan, use of efficient technology, cost and time over-run and such other factors as may be considered appropriate by the Commission for determination of tariff. While carrying out the Prudence Check, the Commission shall look into whether the generating company or transmission licensee has been careful in its judgments and decisions for executing the project or has been careful and vigilant in executing the project;

(49)'Pumped storage hydro generating station' means a hydro station which generates power through energy stored in the form of water energy, pumped from a lower elevation reservoir to a higher elevation reservoir;

(50)'Run-of-River generating station' means a hydro generating station which does not have upstream pondage;

(51)'Run-of-River generating station with pondage' means a hydro generating station with sufficient pondage for meeting the diurnal variation of power demand;

(52)'Rated Voltage' means the manufacturer's design voltage at which the transmission system is designed to operate and includes such lower voltage at which any transmission line is charged or for the time being charged, in consultation with long-term transmission customers /DICs;

(53)'Regular Service' means putting into use a transmission system or element thereof after successful trial operation and a certificate to that effect has been issued by the concerned Regional Load Dispatch Centre;

(54)'Scheduled Commercial Operation Date or SCOD' shall mean the date(s) of commercial operation of a generating station or generating unit or block thereof or transmission system or element thereof as indicated in the Investment Approval or as agreed in power purchase agreement or transmission service agreement as the case may be, whichever is earlier;

(55)'Scheduled Energy' means the quantum of energy scheduled by the concerned Load Despatch Centre to be injected into the grid by a generating station for a given time period;

(56)'Scheduled Generation' or 'SG' at any time or for any period or time block means schedule of ex-bus generation in MW or MWh, given by the concerned Load Despatch Centre;Note: - For the open cycle gas turbine generating station or a combined cycle generating station if the average frequency for any time-block, is below 49.52 Hz but not below 49.02 Hz and the scheduled generation is more than 98.5% of the declared capacity, the scheduled generation shall be deemed to have been reduced to 98.5% of the declared capacity, and if the average frequency for any time-block is below 49.02 Hz and the scheduled generation is more than 96.5% of the declared capacity, the scheduled generation shall be deemed to have been reduced to 96.5% of the declared capacity. In such an event of reduction of scheduled generation of gas turbine generating station, the corresponding drawal schedule of beneficiaries shall be corrected in proportion to their scheduled drawal with adjustment of transmission losses on post facto basis.

(57)'Sharing Regulations' means Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Sharing of Transmission Charges and Losses in inter-State Transmission System) Regulations, 2010 as amended from time to time;

(58)'Small gas turbine generating station' means and includes open cycle gas turbine or combined cycle generating station with gas turbines in the capacity range of 50 MW or below;

(59)'Start Date or Zero Date' means the date indicated in the Investment Approval for commencement of implementation of the project and where no date has been indicated, the date of investment approval shall be deemed to be Start Date or Zero Date;

(60)'Storage type generating station' means a hydro generating station associated with large storage capacity to enable variation of generation of electricity according to demand;

(61)'Thermal Generating Station' means a generating station or a unit thereof that generates electricity using fossil fuels such as coal, lignite, gas, liquid fuel or combination of these as its primary source of energy;

(62)'Trial Run' or 'Trial Operation' in relation to transmission system or a generating station shall have the same meaning as specified in Regulation 5 of these regulations;

(63)'Transmission Service Agreement' means the agreement entered into between the transmission licensee and the designated inter-State transmission customers in accordance with the Sharing Regulations and any other agreement between the transmission licensee and the long term transmission customer where the payment of transmission charges are not made through the POC mechanism under Sharing Regulations;

(64)'Transmission Line' shall have the same meaning as defined in sub-section (72) of section 2 of the Act;

(65)'Transmission System' means a line or a group of lines with or without associated sub-station, equipment associated with transmission lines and sub-stations;

(66)'Sub-Station' shall have the same meaning as defined in sub-section (69) of section 2 of the Act;

(67)'Useful life' in relation to a unit of a generating station and transmission system from the COD shall mean the following, namely:

(a)	Coal/Lignite based thermal generating station	25 years
(b)	Gas/Liquid fuel based thermal generating station	25 years
(c)	AC and DC sub-station	25 years
(d)	Gas Insulated Substation (GIS)	25 years
(d)	Hydro generating station including pumped Storage hydrogenerating stations	35 years
(e)	Transmission line (including HVAC & HVDC)	35 years
(f)	Communication system	15 years

Provided that the useful life for AC and DC substations and GIS for which Notice Inviting Tender is floated on or after 01.04.2014 shall be considered as 35 years.Provided further that the extension of life of the projects beyond the completion of their useful life shall be decided by the Commission;

(68)'Year' means a financial year.The words and expressions used in these regulations and not defined herein but defined in the Act or any other regulation of the Commission shall have the meaning assigned to them under the Act or any other regulation of the Commission.Chapter - 2 General

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Union of India - Section

Section 3 in Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Terms and Conditions of Tariff) Regulations, 2014

3. Definitions and Interpretations.