The Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission (GERC) has approved Deendayal Port Authority’s (DPA) request to adjust its shortfall in solar and other renewable energy obligations against its excess wind energy procurement for the financial year 2019–20. The decision allows DPA to achieve full compliance with its Renewable Purchase Obligations (RPO) without facing any penalty.
The order was issued by a GERC bench comprising Chairman Pankaj Joshi and Members Hiren Shah and Jatin N. Thakkar while disposing of Petition No. 1992 of 2021 filed by DPA. The port authority, which functions as a deemed distribution licensee under the Electricity Act, 2003, had sought regulatory approval for the adjustment under the GERC Renewable Energy Procurement Regulations.
For FY 2019–20, DPA was originally required to meet an overall RPO target of 14.30%. This included 8.05% wind energy, 5.50% solar energy, and 0.75% from other renewable energy sources. However, DPA’s renewable energy procurement profile was heavily concentrated on wind power.
The port authority had invested in wind generation projects, including a 6 MW wind power plant at Sukhpur commissioned in 2017 and a 4.2 MW wind project at Banugar. As a result, DPA procured approximately 98.13% of its total energy requirement of 11.652 million units (MUs) from wind sources during the year.
While the wind energy procurement created a significant surplus, DPA had no procurement from solar and other renewable energy sources, leading to a category-wise shortfall. DPA argued before GERC that purchasing additional solar power only to meet separate RPO categories would increase financial pressure on consumers. The authority also explained that it had started procuring electricity independently during the period and faced challenges in arranging solar power due to its limited consumer base.
During the proceedings, GERC considered previous Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL) rulings and the renewable energy availability scenario in Gujarat during FY 2019–20. The commission noted that solar capacity additions and availability were limited during that period.
GERC also referred to an earlier state-wide review order, where the solar RPO target for FY 2019–20 was revised from 5.50% to 3.52%, while the “Others” renewable category was reduced from 0.75% to 0.24%. The wind RPO requirement remained unchanged at 8.05%.
Using its powers under Regulation 4 of the GERC (Procurement of Energy from Renewable Sources) Second Amendment Regulations, 2018, the commission permitted DPA to compensate for the solar and other renewable energy shortfall through its excess wind energy procurement.
Following the adjustment, DPA’s renewable energy procurement of 98.13% exceeded the revised combined RPO requirement of 11.81%. GERC therefore declared that DPA had fully complied with its renewable purchase obligations for FY 2019–20 and closed the petition without imposing any penalty.
