Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has waived electricity dues amounting to Rs 4,097.67 crore for 14 industries under various schemes over the past decade, Deputy Chief Minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo informed the Assembly on Wednesday.
In a written reply to Congress MLA Taraprasad Bahinipati, Singh Deo, who oversees the energy department, said the exemptions began in the financial year 2015-16 under policies like the Industrial Policy Resolution (IPR) and the Special Economic Zones (SEZ) Policy.
The largest exemption of Rs 3,599.88 crore was granted to Vedanta Ltd, Jharsuguda, under the SEZ Policy-2015. Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL), Paradip, received Rs 314.03 crore in waivers, while Jindal Steel and Power Ltd (JSPL), Angul, was exempted from paying Rs 103.16 crore.
Additionally, Rs 1,324.83 crore in pending electricity dues from 36 industries were waived under the One-Time Settlement Scheme, 2022. Major beneficiaries included Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) with Rs 550.12 crore, IMFA Ltd, Choudwar, with Rs 440.12 crore, and Nalco with Rs 203.91 crore.
Other industries receiving waivers included JSPL, Angul (Rs 35.76 crore), Aditya Aluminium Ltd, Sambalpur (Rs 17.79 crore), Tata Steel Ltd, Kalinganagar (Rs 16 crore), and Vedanta Ltd, Lanjigarh (Rs 10.13 crore).
Despite these exemptions, the government reported Rs 1,096.32 crore in outstanding electricity dues from 23 industries as of October this year. Jindal India Thermal Power Ltd, Talcher, owes the largest amount at Rs 285.02 crore, followed by Visa Steel Ltd, Jajpur, at Rs 246 crore.
Other defaulters include GMR Kamalanga Energy Ltd (Rs 179.35 crore), Maithan Ispat Nigam Ltd (Rs 85.31 crore), Shyam Metalics & Energy Ltd (Rs 83.25 crore), Oswal Chemicals and Fertilisers Ltd (Rs 79.95 crore), and AMNS, Paradip (Rs 56 crore).
