Decks cleared for independent grid manager

Even as the decision to hive off POSOCO was taken in the immediate aftermath of the grid collapse in July 2012, the proposal continued to hang fire for this long on account of inter-ministerial wrangling, with opposition to the move from the erstwhile Planning Commission, law ministry and the Department of Public Enterprises. The reason cited against the proposal included the need to create “such a small Schedule A company with practically no turnover” and on how “transmission was not a very important element in electricity costing” and therefore did not yet need another PSU.

The power ministry has consistently stressed the need for an independent operator in a sector where there are multiple private licencees. System operation is a critical function that needs to be handled by a neutral party and there is the need to ensure that technical staffers with POSOCO be offered high salaries to draw in the best manpower.

In the wake of two consecutive grid failures on July 30-31, 2012, the ministry conducted a study to investigate the reasons and the mitigation measures. Granting full autonomy to POSOCO, which was the most important suggestion, envisaged the creation of a new ‘Schedule A’ firm so that the grid operator can be insulated from any pressure from stakeholders, including its parent — PGCIL. In the era of multiple transmission licensees, it was seen that in the fitness of things, POSOCO should be able to function as a neutral party and independently deal with the problems in the day-to-day operation of the grid, including unwanted tripping due to improper commissioning of equipment, improper maintenance of PGCIL’s communication network and the lack of maintenance.