Chandigarh Administration begins energy audit process in dept
Chandigarh, February 12
On the directions of the Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission (JERC), the UT Electricity Department is all set to carry out an energy audit to assess the actual technical and commercial losses.
The department has started the process and issued the request for proposal for the appointment of a consultant to conduct the energy audit in the department for financial years 2022–23 and 2023–24. The bids have been invited up to February 19.
Earlier, an energy audit had been conducted by the Bureau of Energy Audit, an agency of the Government of India, for years 2020-21 and 2021-22. The JERC had recently directed the department to complete the annual audit of Chandigarh on priority and submit the quarterly report of the action plan.
The audit would assess the pattern of energy consumption in residential and commercial buildings and provide an assessment of electricity consumption and energy efficiency, said a department official. The department was directed to prepare the proposed evaluation of losses in the subsequent years. The investment required to reduce the losses was to be included in the investment plan for the augmentation of the transmission and distribution (T&D) system to be submitted to the commission. Effective technical and administrative measures were to be taken to cut losses.
In response to the directions issued by the JERC in tariff order of last year, the department had submitted that 24,230 smart meters had also been installed in the city. However, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had shelved the project, under which smart electricity meters were to be installed in October 2022.
The Central Government had approved Rs 241 crore in May, 2021, for the installation of smart meters under the smart grid project, but the work on this project could be completed in May 2022.
Under the project, 24,230 smart meters had been installed in Sectors 29, 31, 47 and 48, Faidan, Ram Darbar, Hallo Majra, Raipur Kalan, Makhan Majra and Daria villages and Industrial Area, Phases I and II. The administration had planned to replace all electricity meters with smart ones by the 2022-23 fiscal.
However, with the UT Electricity Department being privatised, the Ministry of Home Affairs had decided to halt the installation of smart meters in the remaining parts of the city.
