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					</table>The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (<a href="https://cercind.gov.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CERC</a>) has proposed amendments to the framework for sharing interstate transmission system charges and losses, including relief for renewable energy projects delayed due to the non-availability of transmission infrastructure.
The draft Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Sharing of Inter-State Transmission Charges and Losses) (Fifth Amendment) Regulations, 2026, will come into effect from the date of publication in the Official Gazette.
The last date to submit comments and suggestions is August 31, 2026.
Under the proposed amendments, wind, solar, and wind-solar hybrid projects delayed beyond their firm connectivity start date due to transmission system unavailability may retain the transmission charge waiver applicable to their original connectivity date.
To qualify, the project must have entered into a power sale contract with a minimum tenure of seven years on or before December 31, 2026. The contract may be executed directly with a buyer or through a trading licensee or Renewable Energy Implementing Agency.
The project must also achieve commercial operation within two months from the date its General Network Access (GNA) becomes effective.
Projects with a firm connectivity start date on or before June 30, 2025, will be eligible for a 100% waiver. Projects with connectivity dates between July 1, 2025, and June 30, 2026, will receive a 75% waiver.
The waiver will fall to 50% for projects with connectivity dates between July 1, 2026, and June 30, 2027, and to 25% for projects with dates between July 1, 2027, and June 30, 2028. Projects with connectivity dates after June 30, 2028, will not receive a waiver under this provision.
The waiver will be available for the duration of the qualifying contract.
Extensions to the contract tenure or replacement of the original contract will not be considered for determining eligibility.
Projects seeking the waiver must submit copies of the relevant contracts to the Central Transmission Utility of India and the National Load Despatch Centre (NLDC) by January 31, 2027.
Where the transaction is routed through a trading licensee or Renewable Energy Implementing Agency, the project must submit both the contract with the generating station and the contract with the drawee entity. Both agreements must have been executed on or before December 31, 2026.
If the project fails to achieve commercial operation within two months of its GNA becoming effective, the waiver will be determined in accordance with the standard trajectory prescribed in the existing regulations.
Projects eligible for a waiver under both the existing provision and the proposed transmission delay provision must select one option within 15 days of achieving commercial operation. The selected option will remain binding for the entire waiver period.
Storage Waiver Clarification
CERC has proposed that battery energy storage systems installed as an integral part of a renewable energy generating station or renewable hybrid generating station should receive the same transmission charge waiver as the associated renewable project.
The waiver will apply where connectivity was obtained by specifying the battery component, including cases where energy storage was added as an approved source change under the GNA Regulations.
The renewable project and the storage system must be scheduled as a single entity.
Energy scheduled from the renewable or hybrid project, including energy discharged from the battery system, will be eligible for a waiver for up to 25 years from the project&#8217;s commercial operation date. The applicable percentage will follow the waiver trajectory prescribed for the renewable project.
The draft also addresses battery systems that charge from different sources during separate charging cycles.
A battery charging from a co-located renewable energy generating station during a particular cycle will be treated under the waiver provision applicable to renewable charging.
For charging cycles in which the battery is not charged from the co-located renewable project, the waiver will be calculated under the separate provision applicable to those cycles.
NLDC must issue a detailed procedure for collecting data and accounting for the energy scheduled for charging during each cycle.
Green Market Purchases
Energy storage systems procuring electricity through the Green Day Ahead Market will be allowed to count the energy toward the requirement that at least 51% of charging electricity must come from renewable sources.
The storage operator must obtain a certificate from the concerned power exchange.
The certificate must indicate the scheduled renewable energy, based on the proportion of wind and solar bids cleared relative to the total cleared seller volume on the exchange.
The draft also proposes contract-by-contract calculation of the transmission charge waiver for hydro-pumped storage projects that fall short of the 51% renewable energy requirement.
NLDC will issue detailed implementation procedures covering data collection and accounting of scheduled energy.
Deviation Accounting
The proposed amendment revises the calculation of transmission deviation where an intra-state drawee entity obtains renewable energy GNA or temporary renewable energy GNA.
For such states, transmission deviation in a time block will be calculated based on net metered drawal exceeding the combined GNA and temporary GNA available to intra-state entities, along with scheduled renewable drawal from identified sources.
The amendment also specifies how drawal by regional entities with dual connectivity to the state and central transmission networks should be treated.
Where a regional drawee entity draws power directly through the State Transmission Utility (STU) network, the lower of the actual and scheduled drawal through the relevant feeders will be considered.
The quantity will be added to the state&#8217;s net drawal when the state is a net importer and subtracted from the state&#8217;s net injection when the state is a net exporter.
No adjustment will be made where the interface meter already records the corresponding drawal or injection, preventing double counting.
For drawee entities connected to both the inter-state and intra-state systems, transmission deviation will be calculated when net metered drawal exceeds the combined GNA to the inter-state network and the access granted by the STU.
The STU must share details of the state-level access with NLDC and the Central Transmission Utility.
Implementation Procedures
The implementing agency must publish revised detailed procedures within 60 days of notification of the final amendment.
The procedures must be prepared after stakeholder consultation and submitted to CERC for information.
The Commission may direct further modifications where required.
The draft also proposes a new provision that would allow CERC to issue suo motu orders and practice directions regarding the implementation of the regulations and related matters.
The proposed amendments follow the Ministry of Power&#8217;s office memorandum issued in April this year, which <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/government-extends-ists-charges-waiver-for-renewable-projects-hit-by-grid-delays?" target="_blank" rel="noopener">directed</a> CERC to amend the Sharing of Inter-State Transmission Charges and Losses Regulations to protect renewable energy projects from losing their ISTS charges waiver due to transmission infrastructure delays beyond developers&#8217; control.
Subscribe to Mercom&#8217;s real-time <a href="https://mercomindia.com/product/mercoms-renewable-energy-regulatory-updates/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Regulatory Updates</a> to ensure you don&#8217;t miss any critical updates from the renewable industry.

CERC Proposes ISTS Waiver Relief for Renewable Projects Facing Grid Delays

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