The Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission (HERC) has directed state power utilities to grant full regulatory clearance for Jindal Stainless Limited (JSL) following an order dated 23 June 2026. The commission required completion of specified operational formalities before the approval is issued. The ruling resolves a dispute over the company’s application for long-term open access to source 100 Megawatt (MW) of round-the-clock renewable power for its manufacturing facility in Hisar, Haryana. The controversy arose after the State Transmission Utility, Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam Limited (HVPNL), and the Grid Co-ordination Committee declined to issue a full No Objection Certificate (NOC). JSL had proposed to source the renewable output from its captive interstate-connected wind-solar hybrid projects in Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. The company maintained that the procurement would replace its existing grid consumption rather than add net load to the state network and that denial of full open access would contravene the Electricity Act, 2003. The state utilities objected to long-term transfers during the peak summer months of June, July, and August, contending that peak demand could reach around 16,500 MW and that transmission constraints might limit imports. They warned that long-term scheduling could reduce the state’s flexibility to procure emergency supplies via Temporary General Network Access (T-GNA) and could increase charges under the Deviation Settlement Mechanism (DSM). Consequently, the utilities offered only partial approval confined to off-peak periods. JSL responded by offering a package of voluntary measures to mitigate grid concerns, including acceptance of complete curtailment of up to 100 MW during severe system constraints without compensation and an undertaking to bear all DSM-related costs and risks. The company asserted that shifting to captive renewable energy would ease pressure on distribution companies and help avoid expensive short-term purchases, estimating annual savings of Rs650 mn to Rs1 bn. HERC found the blanket summer restriction legally unjustified and instructed HVPNL to frame procedures and issue the full NOC within two weeks.