Policy of Government of West Bengal on Mini/Micro Hydro Electric Power Station upto 3 MW :-

• The high and extra high voltage industrial consumers will be allowed to set up captive power plant through no-conventional energy sources including Mini/Micro Hydel Power Station upto 3 MW

• Transmission and wheeling of Power generated.

• The facility for wheeling of Power will be provided by the utility at a wheeling charge of 30 paise/kWh that will be revised from time to time. The wheeling of power will be allowed to not more than one unit of the same industrial undertaking. However, a captive power plant may be set up through a Joint Venture Company constituted by a maximum of 2(two) industrial undertaking who would be eligible to exclusively consume the Power from the captive Power plant in one unit each of the participating industrial undertaking in the Joint Venture Company. For this purpose the industrial undertaking will be required to make its own transmission lines upto nearest grid Sub-Station of the utility along with the associated protective system as per specification of the utility and the said transmission line shall be maintained by the generator.

• Banking facilities

• Utility will allow the power generated to be banked for a period of six month.

• The industrial undertaking will be allowed to draw power from the bank during different time blocks of the day from energy banked by them during the corresponding time blocks.

• Sale of unused power to the utility and commercial treatment for wheeling of power and sale of unused power.

• If the banked energy is not used for six month, the said energy will be deemed to have been sold to the utility at a rate which shall be equivalent to weighted average of the sent-out fuel cost of Thermal Generating Stations of the utility.

• The entire power/energy generated at the captive power plant shall be injected to/banked with utility's grid. If the energy injected to utility's grid along with energy withdrawn from the bank during the month is less than energy consumed by the Industrial undertaking or the company's constituent member in case where the Captive Power Station has been set up by a Joint Venture Company by two industrial undertaking, the utility shall deduct the energy injected plus the energy withdrawn from the Bank during different time blocks from the respective monthly consumption of the said consumers during the corresponding time blocks and bill the consumers as per prevailing tariff. The amount of energy injected to the grid along with the quantum of energy withdrawn from the Bank each month shall be shared by the Company's Constituent Members in case of Joint Venture Project in a manner to be intimated in writing to the utility at the beginning of each year. If the combined maximum demand in KVA drawn by the said consumers during any month exceeds the average power in KVA injected in the grid, such excess maximum demand shall be allocated to constituent members of the company in case of a Joint Venture Company, in a manner to be intimated by the company to the utility at the beginning of each year and charged to the consumers as per prevailing tariff of the utility. The industrials undertakings shall have to ensure payment of AMGR as per power supply agreement executed by them with the utilities.

• A consumer having solar P.V. installation will be allowed to inject his surplus energy to the grid with the banking facility as admissible for industrial undertaking having captive Hydel Power Station upto 3 MW.

• There will be no provision of sale of power by the industrial undertaking to any third party. However, a captive power plant set-up through a joint venture company constituted by a maximum of 2(two) industrial undertakings will be eligible to exclusively consume the Power from the captive power plant in one unit each of the participating industrial undertakings in the Joint venture Company.

• Captive Power can be wheeled through the system of one utility only.

Policy in Respect of Captive Power Plants Utilising Conventional Fuel :-

• New industries may be allowed to set up Captive Power Plant for continuous running provided the same is not connected to the Power Utility's Grid and there is no third party sale. If such captive generation is through installation of diesel generator se, control of noise pollution must be as per stipulations of the Pollution Control Board.

• Already operating industries wishing to switch over to captive generation-party or fully, may be allowed to set up Captive Generation Plant provided such plant is not connected to the Power Utility's Grid and there is no third party sale.

• Environment clearance should be obtained from the West Bengal Pollution Control Board and Environment Department of the State Government.

• Consumers drawing backup power or partial power from Power Utility shall pay monthly demand charge on contract demand at double the normal demand charge rate provided the actual drawal is less than the contract demand. In the event actual demand in a month exceeds the contract demand the excess demand shall be charge at three times the normal charge rate.

• Electricity Duty will be payable under the Bengal Electricity Duty Rules as amended from time to time. Metering arrangement should be made for recording consumption of power generated in the Captive Plants.

• Industrial units may apply to the West Bengal State Electricity Board for clearance u/s-44 of the Electricity (Supply) Act, 1948, after obtaining clearance from West Bengal Pollution Control Board and the Environment Department, Government of West Bengal. Before given consent u/s-44 (1) of the Act, the WBSEB shall consult Central Electricity Authority in cases where the capacity of the Captive Plant exceeds 25 MW.