In a recent order, the Andhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (APERC) ruled that energy generated by a Circulating Fluidised Bed Combustion (CBFC) boiler system was part of cogeneration and thus eligible for exemption from RPO compliance. Steel Exchange India had filed a petition to be exempted from the RPO's requirements. The company also requested that the energy consumed through the cogeneration process from the waste heat recovery system (WHRS) and CBFC boiler be deemed for RPO compliance against consumption from other conventional sources. The coal is burned in a bed of hot particles maintained in flowing air in a CBFC boiler. The fluidised action encourages coal combustion at low temperatures and allows heat to be efficiently transferred from the bed to the steam tubes. The petitioner had been generating electricity through three cogeneration projects, two using the WHRS system and one using the CBFC system, according to the Commission. The Andhra Pradesh State Load Despatch Center argued that the cogeneration projects did not qualify for an exemption from meeting RPO targets because the power generated by the CBFC process could not be separated from WHRS units, according to the Commission. In a previous order, the commission said that cogeneration sources should be treated equally to renewable energy generation sources. As renewable energy sources were not used, the RPO cannot be linked to energy generated through cogeneration. The captive cogeneration projects were supposed to be exempt from RPO compliance regardless of the fossil fuel used. The commission noted that the CBFC project's power was generated as part of a cogeneration system, and thus was exempt from RPO compliance. The Jharkhand State Electricity Regulatory Commission ruled in January that additional electricity generated by cogeneration could not be linked to the RPO. The petitioner's request that cogeneration be treated equally to renewable energy was denied, and the obligated entity was exempted from RPO compliance. The West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission (WBERC) had previously said that any electricity purchased from fossil fuel cogeneration projects would not be counted toward RPO compliance. Image SourceAlso read: Assam announces EV policy with 25% EV penetration goals by 2026