Power tariff to go up by 7percent in Gr Noida from next week
Greater Noida/Noida: The Noida Power Company Limited (NPCL) — a private company that provides electricity in Greater Noida — has decided to increase tariff rates by up to 7% for domestic consumers and up to 8% for commercial and industrial categories from August 10. The decision was taken following an order by Uttar Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (UPERC) on August 1 to implement uniform tariff rates across Uttar Pradesh. However, there will be no retrospective charges. In Noida, which is already following the UPERC order of last year, there is no change in domestic tariff although a 6-7% increase is expected in the LMV 2 (low and medium voltage category used for commercial consumers) and in the industrial category when the relevant notification comes through, officials said. The UPERC tariff order of Monday is for financial year 2016-17 in which there is no increase in domestic and agricultural tariff rates. However, in the case of NPCL, since the domestic tariff rates of last year were not implemented, according to Sarnath Ganguly, general manager, NPCL (Operations), the company is implementing them from August 10 in order to comply with the UPERC order of August 1. “Last year, the tariff rates were lesser for the consumers of NPCL compared to the rest of UP including Noida,” Ganguly said. For example, while the tariff for Noida for domestic consumer was 4.40 for 0-150 units last year, the tariff for Greater Noida NPCL consumers was Rs 4.10 for 0-150 units (see box). Now from August 10, the uniform tariff of Rs 4.40 for 0-150 unit will be charged in Greater Noida as well. “The move is an effort to bring NPCL on par with other consumers of UPPCL as applicable across UP in terms of tariff rates,” Ganguly told TOI. Also, there will be no retrospective charges on new tariff, said Ganguly. The increased tariff ranging from Rs 4.40 to 6.20 per unit, is expected to affect nearly 60,000 consumers of Greater Noida and will be reflected in their September bills. Under the new tariff structure, NPCL has also increased the fixed charge on tariff which from Rs 80 per kWh to Rs 90 per kWh in the domestic category. In the commercial category, while the fixed charge earlier was at Rs 200 per kWh connection, it has now changed to Rs 225 for 2kWh connection, Rs 275 for 2kWh and 3kWh connections, and Rs 355 for connections above 5kWh. The change in fixed charge on tariff for small and medium industries by NPCL include Rs 245 for up to 4kWh connection, Rs 255 for 5kWh to 9kWh connections and Rs 275 for 10kWh and above connections. As for Noida, J K Gupta executive engineer, PVVNL (Distribution), said an increase of 6-7% in the LMV 2 and industrial categories is expected. “The notification for that is expected within a week,” Gupta said. DeVante Parker Jersey
No shutdown of transmission line without permission of SLDC
The Arunachal Pradesh power department on Thursday said that the proposed shutdown of the 132 KV Ranganadi-Ziro transmission line was not in the knowledge of the State Load Despatch Centre. Reacting to media reports about the proposed shutdown, the SLDC said that it was the nodal agency of the state to exercise supervision, monitoring and control of all grid-related operations and as such no shutdown of any element of the grid system could take place without its knowledge and consent. “Even if such shutdown is warranted due to urgency of the work, as stated by Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd, it should be coordinated by the SLDC to ensure minimum disturbance and after consultation with all stake holders to reduce difficulties to the consumers,” Chief Engineer A Perme in a statement in Itanagar said. Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd had informed about the likely shutdown of the transmission line for at least 15 days affecting power supply to Lower Subansiri, Upper Subansisri, Kra Daadi, Kurung Kumey, East Siang, West Siang, Upper Siang and some parts of Papum Pare. Taking a view on the media reports on the matter of shutdown affecting eight districts of central Arunachal, the issue would be discussed in a high level meeting to be chaired by the Commissioner at Pasighat on Thursday, Perme said. The matter would also be raised in the 124th OCC forum of North East Power Committee (NERPC) by the Department of Power on August 8 next in Meghalaya. Ibraheim Campbell Authentic Jersey
GST: Power firms left guessing
Power and renewable energy companies may have to reassess their viability as uncertainty looms over existing tax holidays in the goods and services tax (GST) regime. Most companies enjoy tax exemptions in several states. With the GST Bill being passed in the Rajya Sabha, all eyes are on the model guidelines and the state policies that will follow, particularly on exemptions. “The infrastructure sector will keep its fingers crossed, as there is no clarity on current indirect tax exemptions for this sector,” said Abhishek Jain, tax partner, EY India. The sector is hoping the government will allow existing exemptions to run their course. Jain said another area of concern was the clause in the model GST law that restricted credit on goods and services acquired for construction of immovable property other than plant and machinery. “This clause is interpretative, which may lead to litigation and result in denial of credits in certain situations,” he added. A major concern for energy companies is restrictions on passing on costs if tax exemptions are taken away. Power equipment, solar cell and wind turbine manufacturers fear there could be an increase in cost. “We are waiting for fine print of the GST regulations and how the states emulate these. As there is no electricity duty, wind and solar power companies cannot pass on the cost escalation due to removal of tax holidays,” said an executive with a renewable energy company. Experts expect a 15 per cent rise in the cost of equipment like solar panels and wind turbines if the tax holidays are removed.The ministry of renewable energy had sought from the finance ministry a zero GST rate for the sector. This is in the wake of the falling cost of renewable energy, especially solar power. Terrell Edmunds Authentic Jersey
Bidders remain elusive for Kingfisher House; auction may fail
The proposed auction of Kingfisher House, the erstwhile headquarters of Vijay Mallya-led group’s long-grounded airline, may prove to be a damp squib yet again tomorrow as bidders have remained elusive even at a reduced reserve price of Rs 135 crore. This is the second attempt by the banks to recover part of their unpaid loans from Kingfisher Airlines through auction of this prime office property near domestic airport here, after not even a single bidder turned up at an earlier auction in March at a reserve price of Rs 150 crore. Sources said same fate awaits for the one-hour auction scheduled for tomorrow, as not even a single bidder deposited the earnest deposit money within the deadline of August 1. Besides, the still high reserve price, the numerous legal issues facing the group may also be keeping the bidders away. Kingfisher House is just one of the several properties, together worth over Rs 700 crore that lenders and the tax department will put under hammer this month to recover part of their outstanding dues totalling thousands of crores of rupees from the airline. Gordon Hayward Jersey
Sector impact: GST and the aviation sector
The goods and service tax (GST) once implemented will increase the cost of air tickets and other services such as cargo transportation and aircraft maintenance. The Indian aviation industry believes that the exclusion of petroleum and aviation fuel from its ambit will continue to impact the aviation sector. The central government will continue to impose excise duty on five petroleum products—crude oil, diesel, petrol, natural gas and aviation turbine fuel (ATF), while the state governments will continue to impose value-added tax on these petroleum products. ATF contributes over 40% of an airlines’ operating cost. Jet fuel prices in India are among the highest in the world. ATF prices for domestic carriers vary at different airports across the country due to different rates of sales tax and value-added tax. The various tax components before arriving at the final price include import duty on ATF. While petroleum and petroleum products are technically under GST, the GST council comprising of the Union and state finance ministers will decide upon their induction after the final GST regime is in place. Experts believe that the proposition shall be discussed. Jeff Heuerman Authentic Jersey
AAI profit surges 30% to Rs 2,537 crore in 2015-16
Airports Authority of India (AAI) saw its profit after tax jump nearly 30 percent to Rs 2,537.36 crore last fiscal, on the back of higher passenger numbers and increased revenues. Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha informed the Lok Sabha today that AAI recorded a total revenue of Rs 10,824.50 crore in 2015-16 compared to Rs 9,284.98 crore in the year-ago period. In the last financial year, AAI’s profit after tax stood at Rs 2,537.36 crore, higher than Rs 1,959.22 crore in 2014-15. “Increase in passenger numbers, marginal increase of User Development Fee (UDF) charges in AAI airports, Passenger Service Fee (Facilitation Component) and increase in lease revenue from Delhi and Mumbai airports have contributed to the increase in AAI revenues,” Sinha said in a written reply. According to him, there was an 18 percent rise in passenger traffic, 11 percent increase in aircraft movements and 16.23 percent jump in airport lease revenue during 2015-16. State-owned AAI manages 125 airports, including 11 international aerodromes and 25 civil enclaves. It also provides air traffic management services. Jason Pierre-Paul Jersey
OIL and ONGC pay differential royalty to State of Assam
Public Sector Upstream Oil Companies- Oil India Limited and ONGC Limited today made a payment to the Government of Assam, towards differential royalty on pre-discount price for the period from 1st February, 14 to 31st March, 16. The amount paid by OIL is Rs. 11.4924 billion and the amount paid by ONGC is Rs. 3.0064 billion. The cheques were handed over by the CMDs of ONGC and OIL to the Chief Minister of Assam, Sarbananda Sonowal at New Delhi, in the presence of Petroleum Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan and other dignitaries. Speaking on the occasion, the Petroleum & Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that injustice was being done to Assam due to political reasons in the payment of royalty. He said the differential royalty being paid today was Assams right. The Minister said that the natural resources of a place belong to the people living there and, hence, it was proper that full royalty should be paid to Assam for the oil explored there. He said that this gesture will provide the feel-good factor and improve cooperation between the oil companies and Assam. Assam Chief Minister, Sarbananda Sonowal thanked the Petroleum & Natural Gas Minister for releasing the amount due to it in a single installment. He said that Assam is suffering from a natural disaster and is in acute need of funds. He also thanked the Oil PSUs for contributing Rs. 150 million towards the CM Relief Fund from their CSR initiative. As per statutory provisions, royalty on production of crude oil in the state of Assam is paid by ONGC and OIL to Assam Government. Effective from 2008-09, the royalty to all State Governments including Assam was being paid on post-discount price of crude oil realized by ONGC and OIL from the Public Sector Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs). In view of the litigation arising out of the loss of royalty to State Governments due the discounts being provided by the ONGC and OIL to public sector OMCs and interim decision of the Supreme Court dated 13th February, 14, MoP&NG vide letter dated 15th July, 16 has decided that ONGC and OIL will pay royalty to all crude oil producing states at pre-discount prices effective 01.02.14, pending the outcome of the SLA (Civil) No. 1596/2014 filed by ONGC Ltd. before the Honble Supreme Court. Lee Smith Womens Jersey
Govt could save Rs 20 billion on LPG subsidy through sustained LPG price hikes
The government could save petroleum under-recoveries to the tune of Rs 9.10 billion in the current financial year if the price of subsidized cooking gas or Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) is raised by Rs 1.95 per cylinder per month till March 2017. The savings would stand at a whopping Rs 20 billion for the next financial year in case the price rise is sustained at the current level of volumes. The Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) – Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp (HPCL) – had on Monday raised the price of domestic cooking gas by Rs 1.93 per cylinder. Post the hike, a subsidized LPG cylinder now costs Rs 423.09 in Delhi as against RS 421.16 previously. This was the second straight monthly increase in subsidized LPG prices. “The OMCs may continue to increase retail prices of subsidised domestic LPG by Rs 2 per cylinder every month, similar to subsidised kerosene retail price hike by Rs 0.25per liter per month. If price hike continues, the move would be an important step in the right direction. Besides, a small quantum of price hike could lighten the burden on the consumers considering the politically sensitive nature of the product,” said K Ravichandran, Senior Vice President at research and ratings agency ICRA. According to the current under-recovery sharing formula, the centre bears domestic LPG subsidy upto Rs 18 per Kilogram (around Rs 255 per cylinder) under the Direct Benefit Transfer for LPG (DBTL) scheme. For the month of August 2016, the subsidy on domestic LPG stands at Rs 64 per cylinder. This provides comfort to the state-owned oil firms. “As the domestic LPG under-recoveries of upto Rs 255 per cylinder are to be borne by the centre, the major benefit from fall in Under-Recoveries on domestic LPG would accrue to the government. Also, the benefit of lower under-recoveries would increase with rise in subsidised LPG consumption volumes,” Ravichandran said. The move to increase price follows various steps taken by the government to reduce subsidy including DBTL, cancellation of fake connections and the GiveItUp campaign. The steps have led to total subsidy savings of Rs 212 billion in the past two financial years according to government estimates. A gradual increase in subsidised LPG prices would also be positive for OMCs as they gain from marginal savings on interest burden due to lower under-recoveries. Domestic LPG subsidy was earlier expected to reach Rs 255 per cylinder at an Indian Basket crude oil price of $60 per barrel. Beyond that level of crude oil prices, either the consumers or oil companies would have to bear under-recovery on LPG. According to ICRA, following the total increase of Rs 17.55 per cylinder in subsidised LPG prices, the government may continue to bear threshold LPG subsidy upto crude oil prices of $63-65 per barrel. This would be positive for PSU oil companies over the long term in case crude oil prices increase beyond $65per barrel. Andrew MacDonald Womens Jersey
Barring five, all petroleum items under GST regime
Clarity on the applicability of goods and service tax (GST) on petroleum products may be absent but analysts say a dual tax regime for the oil and gas industry will make compliance difficult. Products like kerosene, naphtha and LPG will be under the ambit of GST, while five items in the basket — crude oil, natural gas, aviation fuel, diesel and petrol — have been excluded during the initial years. Abhishek Jain, tax partner, EY India, said the oil and gas industry would largely be negatively impacted by the introduction of GST. “Because of the peculiarity, this industry would be pained to comply with both the current tax regime as well as the GST regime,” he said. While compliance is one reason, taking tax credit would be another issue. Besides, there would be non-creditable tax costs. Jain cited the example of a refinery producing diesel and petrol that would pay GST on the procurement of plant, machinery and services; GST would not be creditable against the out-excise duty and VAT levied on petrol and diesel. “The said tax costs would have an inflationary impact on the overall economy,” he said. Under the proposed GST regime and the current VAT structure, tax on inputs are deducted from the tax payable on the final product. Besides plant and machinery, crude oil and natural gas, which are processed to get various petroleum products, do not attract GST. For instance, LPG is produced both from natural gas and crude oil. While LPG would be part of GST, crude oil and natural gas would not be. The constitutional amendment Bill cleared by the Rajya Sabha is an enabling legislation. It is expected that clarity on what happens to the rates on petroleum products covered under the GST ambit will come only after the central GST Bill is passed by the Union government and after the states pass their respective GST Bills. The Constitutional Amendment Bill passed by the Upper House on Wednesday said petroleum” would be under the purview of GST. It is not clear which products are covered under the generic terms. Oscar Lindberg Authentic Jersey
GST roll out may improve ease of doing business: Govt
The government has set April 1, 2017 as the target date for introducing the goods and services tax, even as it said there are challenges to meet it. GST may improve ease of doing business and bring down prices in the long run though much of it would also depend on the rates that are yet to be decided, it said. Addressing a press conference a day after the Rajya Sabhha passes the much-awaited Constitution amendment Bill, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the government has given notice to table the changes to the Bill in the Lok Sabha, which has already cleared the earlier version of the Bill. The Bill will go to 29 state assemblies whose monsoon sessions are on currently. The states where the session is not on can call special session, he said. In a presentation, Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia said the target date for GST roll out is April 1, 2017. To a query over this, Jaitley said, “We are going to try to make it as reasonably quick. Which is a date is yet to be seen,” he said. However, he also added that setting target is better than having none. Adhia spelt out seven challenges that the government has to address to meet the deadline. These include calculation of revenue base of Centre and States, along with compensation requirements of Centre, GST rates structure, list of exemptions, forming of consensus on model GST Bill, threshold limits, compounding limits and avoiding dual control over scruity and assessment. The finance minister said once GST is rolled out, ease of doing business would improve in the country and in long run the tax rate would also come down. “It is obvious that many items may see reduction in prices,” he added. However, to a query that the countries who have introduced GST saw rise in inflation initially, he said,”there is no settled model in this regard.” He said all this would also depend on the GST rates and slabs, a decision which is yet to be taken by the GST council. When asked about the 18% tax rate which the Congress demanded based on the chief economic adviser Arvind Subramanian report, he said CEA had suggested rates in the range of 16.9-18.9%, which when rounded off becomes 17-19%. “This 18% has been thrust on CEA,” he said. The finance minister said 60-70% of items attract 27% tax, including Central and states. If cesses, surcharges and local taxes are also included it goes up to at least 30%. Now, Empowered Committee of state finance ministers, he said had resolved to bring down GST rate from this level. However, the rate should also meet the states development goals. This balance will be decided by the proposed GST council, he said. Chris Carson Womens Jersey