Government to hike power tariff to pay Rs 38,552 crore discom dues

Residents in Delhi may soon face higher electricity bills, with tariffs expected to rise from April 2026 as the Delhi Government moves to clear outstanding dues exceeding Rs 38,000 crore owed to the city’s three power distribution companies (discoms).

The Government is, however, planning to subsidise the hike in power tariff to cushion the impact on the consumers.

“This is a regulatory business. The Government is committed to ensuring that no burden falls on the people of Delhi,” Delhi Power Minister Ashish Sood assured on the first day of the Budget Session of the Delhi Assembly on Monday.

“The previous Government has left a debt of more than Rs 38000 crores of regulatory assets with the discoms through DERC. To recover this, the companies are authorised to increase the electricity rates. During the tenure of the previous Government, on the orders of the high court, DERC was ordered to bring tariff orders,” he said.

The Delhi Power Minister also slammed the former AAP-led administration for neglecting the public interest and allowing the debt to grow unchecked. “The successive failures of various past Governments, combined with the connivance and corrupt underhand dealings of the AAP Government and DISCOMs, have resulted in this massive accumulation of debt. Despite DISCOMs receiving continuous subsidies from the Government, their Regulatory Assets simultaneously increased. This points to clear collusion and financial mismanagement by the AAP Government,” the minister stated.

In August last year, the Supreme Court directed that regulatory assets, including carrying costs of Rs 27,200 crore, be paid to Delhi’s private discoms — BSES Rajdhani Power Limited (BRPL), BSES Yamuna Power Limited (BYPL), and Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL) — within seven years.

Regulatory assets refer to costs approved for future recovery. These have risen sharply due to the absence of tariff hikes in Delhi over the past decade under the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Government.

Regulatory assets - costs that are expected to be recovered in future - have risen sharply due to a lack of any power tariff hike in the past decade under the Aam Aadmi Party rule.

In January, the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) informed the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL) that total regulatory assets in the capital stood at Rs 38,552 crore. This includes Rs 19,174 crore for BRPL, Rs 12,333 crore for BYPL, and Rs 7,046 crore for TPDDL, reflecting approved expenditures incurred by discoms in supplying electricity.

The original regulatory asset amounts have increased due to piling up interest because of the delay in recovery, they said.

The court had also directed DERC to prepare a recovery plan, account for carrying costs (interest) and conduct a detailed audit explaining the prolonged delay in cost recovery.

The recovery is likely to be made through an increased regulatory asset surcharge in electricity bills over a seven-year period.

Delhi Power Minister Ashish Sood in March last year said the discoms were authorised to recover Rs 27,000 crore accumulated as regulatory assets, hinting that the electricity rates may go up in the city.