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2025 Supreme(Online)(CERC) 156
CENTRAL ELECTRICITY REGULATORY COMMISSION
Shri Jishnu Barua, CJ, Shri Ramesh Babu V., J, Shri Harish Dudani, J, Shri Ravinder Singh Dhillon, J
POWERGRID Koppal Gadag Augmentation Transmission Limited – Appellant
Versus
Central Transmission Utility of India Limited – Respondent
Petition No. 251/TL/2025
For the Appellants/Petitioners: Shri Rohit Jain
For the Respondents: Shri Akshayvat Kislay, Shri Deepak Kumar
The court affirmed the necessity of compliance with the Electricity Act and the Transmission Licence Regulations for granting a transmission licence, emphasizing public notice and absence of objections as key considerations.
Headnote:(A) Electricity Act, 2003 - Sections 14, 15, and 79(1)(e) - Grant of transmission licence - The Commission proposed to grant a transmission licence to POWERGRID Koppal Gadag Augmentation Transmission Limited for implementing the inter-State transmission system, with no objections received following public notice. The licence is subject to compliance with the Transmission Licence Regulations, 2024. (Paras 1, 7, 8, 9)
(B) Public Notice - Requirement for suggestions/objections - The Commission must publish a public notice to invite suggestions or objections before granting a transmission licence, ensuring transparency and public participation in the licensing process. (Paras 3, 5, 6)
Facts of the case:
The petitioner filed for a transmission licence to implement a project for strengthening the transmission system at Koppal and Gadag, with competitive bidding determining the successful bidder.
Findings of Court:
The Commission found that the petitioner met the requirements for the grant of a transmission licence and directed the issuance of the licence.
Issues: The main issues were whether the petitioner satisfied conditions for the grant of a transmission licence and the absence of public objections following the notice.
Ratio Decidendi: The court emphasized the necessity of compliance with the relevant sections of the Electricity Act and the Transmission Licence Regulations, affirming the importance of public notice in the licensing process.
Result: Petition No. 251/TL/2025 is allowed.
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. petition for transmission licence under electricity act (Para 2) |
| 2. public notice for objections to licence grant (Para 3 , 4) |
| 3. hearing on licence application (Para 5 , 6) |
| 4. conditions for granting transmission licence (Para 7 , 8) |
| 5. monitoring and compliance requirements (Para 9 , 10) |
| 6. petition allowed (Para 13) |
ORDER
The Petitioner, POWERGRID Koppal Gadag Augmentation Transmission Limited (erstwhile Gadag II And Koppal II Transmission Limited), has filed the present Petition for the grant of a transmission licence under Sections 14, 15 and 79(1)(e) of the Electricity Act, 2003 (hereinafter referred to as “the Act”) read with the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Procedure, Terms, and Conditions for grant of Transmission Licence and other related matters) Regulations, 2024 (hereinafter referred to as “the Transmission Licence Regulations”) to implement the inter-State transmission system, namely “System Strengthening at Koppal-II and Gadag-II for integration of RE generation projects” (hereinafter referred to as “Project”) on a Build, Own, Operate and Transfer basis, consisting of the following elements:
| Sl. No | Name of the Transmission Element Scheduled COD as per Gazette Notification | % of Quoted Transmission Charges recoverable on the Scheduled COD of the Element of the Project | Element(s) that are pre- required for declaring the commercial operation (COD) of the respective Element | |
| 1(a) | Augmentation of 3x1500 MVA (5th, 6th & 7th), 765/400kV ICTs at Koppal- II PS 3x1500 MVA, 765/400 kV ICTs • • 765 kV ICT bays – 3 nos. • 400 kV ICT bays – 3 nos. | 30.12.2025 | 50.73 | Element at 1(b) |
| 1(b) | Augmentation of 5x500 MVA, 400/220kV ICTs (5th, 6th, 7th, 8th & 9th) at Koppal-II PS 5x500 MVA, 400/220 kV ICTs • 400 kV ICT bays- 5 nos. • 220 kV ICT bays- 5 nos. • | 30.12.2025 | Element at 1(a) | |
| 1(c) | 6 nos. of 220kV line bay at Koppal-II PS for termination of dedicated Connectivity transmission line of RE developers | 2 Nos. – 30.12.2025 | 1 | Elements at 1(a) & 1(b) |
| 1(d) | 2 Nos. – 01.03.2026 | 1 | Elements at 1(a) & 1(b) | |
| 1(e) | 1 No. – 31.01.2026 | 0.50 | Elements at 1(a) & 1(b) | |
| 1(f) | 1 No. – 31.12.2026 | 0.57 | Elements at 1(a) & 1(b) | |
| 2(a) | Augmentation of 7x500 MVA, 400/220kV ICTs (3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th & 9th) at Gadag-II PS 3x500 MVA, 400/220 kV ICTs • 400 kV ICT bays- 3 nos. • 220 kV ICT bays- 3 nos. • 4X500 MVA, 400/220 kV ICTs • 400 kV ICT bays- 4 nos. • 220 kV ICT bays- 4 nos. • | 3 ICTs – 30.12.2025 | 12.60 | Element at 1(a) |
| 2(b) | 4 ICTs – 24 months (16/01/202 7) | 29.94 | Elements at 1(a) & 2(c) | |
| 2(c) | Gadag-II PS – Koppal-II PS 400kV (Quad) 2nd D/c line • 400kV line bays – 2 Nos. (at Koppal-II PS) • 400kV line bays – 2 Nos. (at Gadag-II PS) | 24 months (16/01/202 4) | Elements at 1(a) & 2(b) | |
| 2(d) | 1 No. of 400kV line bay at Gadag-II PS for termination of dedicated transmission line of RE developers | 30.12.2025 | 1 | Element at 1(a) |
| 2(e) | 5 nos. of 220kV line bay at Gadag-II PS for termination of dedicated Connectivity transmission line of RE developers | 220kV line bays 2 Nos. – 30.12.2025 | 1 | Elements at 1(a) & 2(a) |
| 2(f) | 220kV line bays 1 No. – 31.07.2026 | 0.5 | Elements at 1(a), 2(a), 2(b) & 2(c) | |
| 2(g) | 220kV line bays 1 No. – 31.03.2027 | 0.58 | Elements at 1(a), 2(a), 2(b) & 2(c) | |
| 2(h) | 220kV line bays 1 No. – 01.06.2027 | 0.58 | Elements at 1(a), 2(a), 2(b) & 2(c |
Note:
Developer of Koppal-ll PS/ Gadag-ll PS shall provide the space for implementation of the above system strengthening works at Koppal-li PS/Gadag-ll PS.”
2. Based on the competitive bidding carried out by the PFC Consulting Limited (PFCCL), in its capacity as the Bid Process Coordinator (BPC), in accordance with the Guidelines issued by the Ministry of Power, Government of India under Section 63 of the Act, Power Grid Corporation of India Limited was declared a successful bidder with the lowest quoted annual transmission charges of Rs. 1,966.91 million per annum.
3. The Commission, after considering the application of the Petitioner in light of the provisions of the Act and the Transmission Licence Regulations, in its order dated 26.5.2025, prima facie proposed to grant
