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PSERC Approves Additional Surcharge on Open Access Consumers in Punjab

The Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) has approved Punjab State Power Corporation Ltd’s (PSPCL) proposal to levy an additional surcharge on open access power consumers for the period from April 1 to September 30, 2025. Full open access consumers will be charged Rs1.22/kWh, while partial open access users will pay Rs0.83/kWh. The surcharge is intended to compensate PSPCL for stranded generation capacity that remains unused when consumers procure power from third-party sources instead of the DISCOM.

PSPCL justified the surcharge by highlighting that it maintains adequate generation capacity to meet all demand, including that of open access consumers. When these consumers switch to external suppliers, PSPCL’s contracted power goes underutilized, resulting in unrecovered fixed costs. Even when transmission infrastructure is unused, the DISCOM still incurs costs, prompting the demand for additional compensation.

PSERC, after reviewing the submitted power generation and consumption data, concurred that the DISCOM bears fixed costs due to unutilized generation contracts. While partial open access consumers already contribute to fixed charges, full open access consumers do not. Thus, the Commission sanctioned the surcharge to ensure fair recovery of costs and maintain financial viability for the utility.

This regulatory move underscores the ongoing balancing act between promoting open access and ensuring DISCOMs can recover fixed costs in a changing electricity market landscape.