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2025 Supreme(Online)(CERC) 174
CENTRAL ELECTRICITY REGULATORY COMMISSION
Shri Jishnu Barua, Chairperson, Shri Ramesh Babu, Member, Shri Harish Dudani, Member
Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited – Appellant
Versus
Ratnagiri Gas and Power Private Limited – Respondent
Petition No. 276/MP/2024
Shri C. S. Vaidyanathan, Senior Advocate, MSEDCL
Shri Ramji Srinivasan, Senior Advocate, RGPPL
Termination of Power Purchase Agreement is valid, leading to enforceable capacity charges, due to lack of timely challenge by the respondent and prior judicial affirmations.
Headnote:(A) Electricity Act, 2003 - Section 79(1)(f) - Termination of Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) - Petitioner sought to quash invoices raised by the Respondent, claiming them to be void and illegal - Court held that termination of PPA was valid, leading to liability for capacity charges being enforceable - MSEDCL failed to establish limitations on the validity of the termination; the judgment from the Supreme Court, reinforcing prior findings, impliedly resolved PPA termination matters, making claims for payments valid - Issues of force majeure raised by RGPPL were not relevant to PPA termination validity - MSEDCL to pay outstanding dues as per previous rulings including fixed charges based on declared capacity. (Paras 1, 25, 32, 39, 46)
(B) Statutory Obligations - Enforcement of legal rights under previously established judgments regarding capacity charges and enforcement provisions relating to late payment surcharge under LPS Rules sustained. (Paras 42-46)
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. background of the case and involved parties (Para 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5) |
| 2. previous litigation history and agreements (Para 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10) |
| 3. recent actions by parties regarding ppa (Para 11 , 12 , 13) |
| 4. arguments presented by msedcl (Para 14 , 15 , 16 , 17) |
| 5. defense against claims by rgppl (Para 18 , 19) |
| 6. judicial observations on previous rulings (Para 20 , 21) |
| 7. conclusions on the maintainability of claims (Para 22 , 23) |
| 8. final summary of the court's ruling (Para 24 , 25 , 26) |
| 9. legal implications of the court's orders (Para 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31) |
| 10. final order regarding the payments owed (Para 32 , 33 , 34 , 35) |
ORDER
The Petitioner, Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (in short ‘MSEDCL’) has filed this Petition under Section 79 (1)(f) of the Electricity Act, 2003 (the Act) seeking the following relief(s):
(a) Declare that the invoices raised by the Respondent No. 1 against the Petitioner, as more specifically set out in ANNEXURE P – 28 to this Petition, as void, non-est and illegal;
(b) Restrain the Respondent No.1 from issuing any further invoices under the terminated PPA dated 10.04.2007 and from uploading any further invoices on the PRAAPTI portal, seeking payment thereof;
(c) Direct Respondents No. 2 and 3 to restore Petitioner’s short-term access and full GNA;
(d) Restrain the Respondents from taking any coercive steps against the Petitioner in furtherance of such impermissible, inapplicable, void, non-est and arbitrary invoices, including by way of regulation of GNA and open access under the framework of the LPS Rules;
(e) Pass ad-interim / interim / ex-parte order(s) in respect of the prayer (b), (c) and (d) hereinabove; and
(f) Pass any other further order as this Hon’ble Commission may deem fit and proper in the fact and circumstances of the case.
Background facts
2. Ratnagiri Gas and Power Private Limited (Respondent No.1 herein) is a joint venture of NTPC Ltd, GAIL, MSEB Holding Company, ICICI, IDBI, SBI, and Canara Bank. was established as a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to take over the assets of Dabhol Power Project, which were owned by Dabhol Power Company Limited (in short ‘DPC’), a private company promoted and established by the erstwhile Enron Group. The assets of DPC included a gas-based combined cycle power project with an estimated net capacity of 2150 MW (as per the restructuring plan), along with an integrated LNG Terminal of estimated capacity of 5 MMTPA and associated infrastructure facilities at District Ratnagiri in the State of Maharashtra. The Dabhol Power Project consisted of three Blocks, namely, Block I, Block II, and Block III, with each of them having two Gas turbines and one Steam Turbine and a common LNG Terminal. The Block-I of the Dabhol Power Project was established by the year 1999, and work on Blocks-II and III and the LNG terminal was in progress in May 2001, when its operation was closed down. Maharashtra State Electricity Board (in short ‘MSEB’) a board constituted in the State of Maharashtra under Section 5 of the Electricity (Supply) Act, 1948 was the beneficiary of the entire power generated from the above project as per the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) and related agreements entered into between DPC and MSEB. DPC and its promoter, Enron Group, ran into serious financial and other difficulties and could not continue to operate the Dabhol Power Project. Consequently, DPC and MSEB also went into litigation. These litigations involved the invocation of guarantees and counter-guarantees given by the Government of Maharashtra and the Government of India for the project. The operation in the Dabhol Power Project was eventually closed down in May 2001. Upon its closure, the said Project and all its assets were placed under the control of a Receiver appointed by the Hon’ble High Court of Bombay in Suit No. 875/2002.
3. The Government of India and the Government of Maharashtra were desirous of reviving the Dabhol Power Project, considering the hug
