The Bihar Electricity Regulatory Commission (BERC) has released a draft tariff order proposing generic levelised tariffs for electricity generated from select renewable energy sources for the financial year 2025-26.

Biomass gasifier-based power projects have been assigned a tariff of around ₹9.49 (~$0.106)/kWh, compared to ₹9.12 (~$0.102)/kWh in the previous year.

The tariff proposed for bagasse-based cogeneration projects is approximately ₹7.77 (~$0.087)/kWh, compared to ₹7.40 (~$0.082)/kWh in FY25, while for cogeneration projects using biomass other than bagasse, it is about ₹8.47 (~$0.094)/kWh, compared to ₹8.09 (~$0.090)/kWh in the previous year.

Tariffs for municipal solid waste-based projects using Rankine cycle technology have been reduced to around ₹6.46 (~$0.072)/kWh, from ₹6.51 (~$0.072)/kWh in FY25.

Refuse-derived fuel-based projects carry a higher tariff of approximately ₹9.22 (~$0.103)/kWh, compared to last year’s ₹9.13 (~$0.102)/kWh.

Lower tariffs have been proposed for projects that avail of accelerated depreciation benefits under the Income Tax Act.

Stakeholders can submit their comments, suggestions, and objections by January 19, 2026.

The Commission has clarified that the generic tariff determined for FY26 will apply to renewable energy projects commissioned up to March 31, 2026. The same tariff will continue to apply to projects commissioned thereafter until a revised generic tariff order is notified.

The draft order adopts a normative debt equity ratio of 70:30 for all eligible renewable energy projects. Interest on loan has been pegged at 10.80%, derived from the State Bank of India’s marginal cost of lending rate with an additional margin. The interest rate considered for the previous year’s calculation was 10.7%.

Post-tax return on equity (RoE) has been considered at 16.96% for the first 20 years of operation and 21.52% for the remaining tariff period. In the previous year the RoE was determined as 16.784% for the first 20 years and 18.691% for the remaing period.

A discount factor of 9.11% has been applied for levelization, reflecting the weighted average cost of capital. Depreciation has been allowed at 4.67% for the initial years, with the balance spread over the remaining useful life.

Operation and maintenance expenses have been escalated annually at 3.84%.

Biomass power projects have been assigned a plant load factor of 80%, while biomass gasifier projects are set at 85%. Cogeneration projects have been assigned a lower plant load factor of 53% reflecting their operational characteristics.

Fuel prices for FY 2025–26 have been fixed at ₹4,472.72 (~$49)/ton for biomass, ₹2,859.32 (~$31)/ton for bagasse, and ₹2,620.49 (~$29)/ton for refuse-derived fuel. A normative annual fuel price escalation of 3.45 % has been assumed. No fuel cost has been allowed for municipal solid waste-based projects, recognising waste as a zero-cost input.

Technologies such as solar, wind, hybrid, and storage-linked renewable energy projects are excluded from this generic order and will continue to be governed by project-specific tariff determination.

In October this year, BERC set a target of meeting 43.33% of its energy requirements from renewable sources by the financial year 2030.

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