Court asks NTPC, BSES to resolve dispute, report Tuesday

New Delhi, May 1 (IANS) The Supreme Court Thursday asked state-run power utility NTPC and private sector distributor BSES to mutually sort out their disputes over payments along with the regulator while fixing Tuesday as the next date for hearing the matter.

NTPC told the apex court bench headed by Justice S.S. Nijjar that the power distributor in the national capital was yet to pay its dues as was directed, while BSES strongly refuted the claim and said it had complied with the order and paid Rs.601 crore.

During the hearing, it also emerged that there were discrepancies in the amount that NTPC claimed was owed to it by BSES. The Reliance Group-led BSES has to reply Monday.

In the interim, the court asked all the three parties, including the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission, to resolve the matter and arrive at a consensus both in terms of the money payable and what has been paid.

As NTPC indicated that it will have to regulate the power supply, the court said it can't resort to shut down.

Earlier too, NTPC had threatened to cut supplies to BSES -- which distributes power to a significant part of the national capital through two of its entities, BSES Yamuna and BSES Rajdhani. Then, too, the Supreme Court had said consumers must not be inconvenienced.

"This is not the right attitude to take," the bench had told the NTPC counsel, referring to the notice to cut supplies the state-run utility had served on the two companies. "We have to look after the people of Delhi. The consumer should not suffer," it said.