Draft National Electricity Policy Aims To Strengthen Distribution
The meeting was chaired by the secretary of the Ministry of Power and included chief executives and senior leaders of major power sector organisations.
Participants welcomed the draft policy as a comprehensive and forward-looking framework that sets strategic direction for the sector.
Deliberations stressed that electricity supply must match the ambitions of Viksit Bharat at 2047, which envisages a USD 30 trillion (tn) economy and energy independence.
The draft targets raising per capita electricity consumption to 2,000 kWh by 2030 and to over 4,000 kWh by 2047, aligning with commitments to reduce emissions intensity by 45 per cent from 2005 levels by 2030 and to achieve net zero by 2070.
The policy also emphasises competition, grid resilience for higher shares of variable renewable energy and consumer centric service delivery.
A central concern was the financial sustainability of distribution companies, with strategies proposed for optimised procurement, single digit Aggregate Technical and Commercial losses and strengthened corporate governance.
The policy envisages phased rollout of smart meters with prepayment functionality beginning with government, commercial and industrial consumers, accompanied by regular energy audits and improved accounting practices.
Measures to promote shared distribution networks, GIS based asset mapping and system automation were highlighted as means to improve operational efficiency and reduce duplication.
The draft policy recognises the growing role of distributed energy resources and recommends establishment of a Distribution System Operator (DSO) to facilitate integration of distributed renewables, energy storage systems and Vehicle to Grid (V2G) technologies.
It proposes optimal network redundancy at specified voltage levels and redundancy at distribution transformer level for all cities with a population exceeding one million (mn) by 2032, along with underground cabling in congested urban areas.
The roundtable underlined the urgency of sustained reforms to secure distribution companies (DISCOMs) viability and to support India's broader economic and energy transition under the vision of Viksit Bharat at 2047.