Hyderabad: Power experts from Telangana have pitched for the government to cancel old power purchase agreements, saying they were disadvantageous for the state and burden the consumers. As things stand now, Telangana can benefit for two years from the PPAs but AP will get cheaper power for 20 years if the agreements stand, they said.

They said power generation is very cheap in Telangana and costly in AP. “If they go by the PPAs, Telangana may have to shell out hundreds of crores more for the next decade. It is better to support the AP government’s line,” said the People’s Monitoring Group on Electricity Regulation at a conference to discuss the tariff hike proposals. AP has proposed to cancel the PPAs.

“Telangana will have to suffer power shortage just one year. By next year, the state will get 2,600 MW, if the government’s plans fructify. Bhoopalapally (600 MW), Singareni-Jaipur (1,200 MW) and KTPS (800 MW) will start production before October 2016,” said PMG convener K. Raghu.

He said that in Andhra Pradesh just 2,200 MW would be generated through Krishnapatnam (1,600 MW) and RTPP (600 MW).

“The production cost at both the Andhra Pradesh plants would be high compared to the three plants in Telangana. So, if the Telangana government could pass this year, the state need not rely on anybody,” Mr Raghu said.

“A comparison of the annual revenue requirement reports submitted by the discoms show the gaps in consumption and the expenses. The consumption for fewer pumpsets in the southern discom is more than that of the larger number of pumpsets in the northern discom. This estimate is unreliable and something is seriously wrong,” said M. Thimma Reddy, another expert.

Experts expressed concern over the number of deaths due to electric shocks, 216 farmers in eight months. Power is supplied irregularly at nights and due to the shortage of staff, one helper covers 10 villages, the farmers attempt to correct smaller problems, resulting in electrocution, they said.