Supreme Court Sets Rules on Regulatory Asset Recovery

08 Aug 2025 CW Team

The Hon’ble Supreme Court of India has, on 6 August 2025, pronounced its judgment and disposed of the Writ Petitions and Civil Appeals filed in 2014 by BSES Yamuna Power Limited and BSES Rajdhani Power Limited—both material subsidiaries of the company—regarding the recovery of Regulatory Assets.

The petitions challenged non-cost-reflective tariffs, the unlawful creation of Regulatory Assets, and the delay in their liquidation. After extensive hearings involving State Governments and State Electricity Regulatory Commissions, the Court had reserved judgment on 20 February 2025.

In its final ruling, the Court laid out ten principles (‘sutras’) and issued nine binding directions for Electricity Regulatory Commissions (ERCs) and the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL), aiming to ensure accountability, transparency, and timely recovery in tariff regulation.

Key directives include:

Tariffs must be cost-reflective as a primary principle.

Regulatory Assets may only be created in exceptional situations, and must not exceed a reasonable percentage—guided by

Rule 23 of the Electricity Rules, 2005, which suggests a cap of 3 per cent of the Aggregate Revenue Requirement (ARR).
Once created, a Regulatory Asset must be liquidated within three years; existing assets must be cleared by 1 April 2028, following a four-year roadmap from 1 April 2024.
ERCs must define a clear recovery roadmap and conduct strict audits of continued non-recovery.
APTEL is tasked with ensuring oversight, issuing directions under Section 121, and registering a suo moto petition to monitor compliance.

In compliance with the ruling, the Regulatory Asset approved by the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) will be fully liquidated within four years from 1 April 2024, as mandated.

Infrastructure Urban

10 Mar 2026

ABB to Invest Rs 6.25 Billion to Expand India Manufacturing

ABB recently announced plans to invest approximately Rs 6.25 billion ($75 million) in India during 2026 to expand its manufacturing footprint and research and development capabilities. The investment follows more than $35 million spent in 2025 and reflects the company’s continued focus on strengthening its ‘local-for-local’ strategy in the country.The investment will support ABB’s Electrification, Motion and Automation businesses and expand manufacturing capacity for infrastructure sectors such as renewable energy, metro rail, data centres and industrial applications. Approximately 300..

Six WOLFF Cranes Handle 60,000 m³ Concrete for German Hospital

Six WOLFF tower cranes are playing a key role in constructing a new hospital complex in Memmingen, Germany, supporting large-scale material handling for the project. The facility is being built on a 7.7-hectare site and will feature six floors, around 480 beds and a gross floor area exceeding 75,000 sq m.Building shell works began recently in February 2025. One WOLFF 6531.12 Cross crane supported early site preparation before being dismantled in autumn 2025, while five remaining cranes continue operations. Over an average deployment period of 16 months, the cranes are expected to move approxim..

REC Funds Rs 115.6 Million CSR Support for Bihar Eye Hospital

REC recently committed Rs 115.6 million under its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme for the procurement of clinical and non-clinical equipment at Sankara Eye Hospital in Saharsa, Bihar. The initiative aims to strengthen healthcare infrastructure and improve access to specialised eye care services in the region.A Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) was recently signed between Pradeep Fellows, Executive Director (CSR), REC Limited, and Wg Cdr V. Shankar (Retd), Trustee and Executive Director of Sankara Eye Hospital, at the REC office in the SCOPE Complex, New Delhi.The support is expecte..