Tata Power to Acquire a Major Shareholding in Odisha’s Discom

• After successfully entering Odisha, Tata Power Company Ltd has reportedly won a bid to purchase 51% of the entire stock in Odisha’s CESU (Central Electricity Supply Utility).

Mumbai-based Tata Power has revealed via a statement that its bid to acquire 51% of CESU’s stock has been approved by OERC (the Odisha Electricity Regulatory Commission). The regulator reportedly issued a Letter of Intent (a license) to the power company to confirm its position to hold the majority of electricity distribution and retail supply in CESU. The license will be offered for 25 years per the report. The 5 electrical circles that makeup CESU include Bhubaneswar (Electrical Circle I and II), Paradip, Cuttack, and Dhenkanal. This acquisition will directly double the company’s consumer base to 5 million. Its current consumer count is 2.5 million which cuts across Delhi, Mumbai, and Ajmer. CESU’s consumer base alone is 2.5 million. When the two are put together we get the 5 million mentioned above.

Speaking on the achievement, the CEO of Tata Power, Praveer Sinha, said:

“Tata Power has had some successful public and private partnerships in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity in the country. This is one of them and is a move designed to expand our reach within the region” 

Meanwhile, the sale of Discom is going to happen through the creation of an SPV (special purpose vehicle), where, Tata power will hold 51% equity in their management while the state government will own just 49% of the overall stock.