The Chhattisgarh State Electricity Regulatory Commission (CSERC) has released the Draft Second Amendment Regulations, 2025 concerning Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) and the REC framework. This draft aligns with India’s climate commitments and recent policy changes from the Ministry of Power and court judgements. As per Section 86(1)(e) of the Electricity Act, 2003, the State Commission must promote renewable power generation and set purchase targets for distribution licensees. This draft follows the Tariff Policy 2016 and builds upon the earlier regulations of 2021 and 2022.
India has pledged to achieve net zero emissions by 2070 and aims for 500 GW of non-fossil fuel electricity capacity by 2030, with 50% of energy consumption expected from renewable sources. To meet this goal and follow the Energy Conservation Act, 2001, the Ministry of Power issued a notification on October 20, 2023, laying out a revised RPO trajectory effective from April 1, 2024. This includes a new category called Distributed Renewable Energy, which allows flexibility in meeting obligations. Moreover, an earlier cap on RPO for captive consumers using plants commissioned before 2015-16 has now been removed.
A February 20, 2024 judgement by the Hon’ble Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL) clarified that even consumers using power from fossil fuel-based co-generation plants must comply with RPO. The draft regulations therefore make RPO applicable to such captive users and propose a 50% compliance level for FY 2025-26, considering four months of the financial year have already passed.
The new regulations define Distributed RPO as energy sourced from renewable projects under 10 MW, including solar setups with net metering, virtual metering, and behind-the-meter configurations. The minimum procurement percentage from renewable sources is revised for each year from 2025-26 to 2029-30, starting with a total RPO of 33.01% in 2025-26 and reaching 43.33% in 2029-30. For captive users consuming from fossil fuel-based co-generation, the RPO for 2025-26 is set at 16.505%.
Specific obligations include sourcing wind energy from projects commissioned after March 31, 2024, and hydro energy from new small hydro or pumped storage projects. Distributed RPO will be calculated using a default multiplier of 3.5 kWh per kW per day if actual data is not available. Any excess in wind or hydro categories can be used to compensate shortfalls in others.
Additionally, an Energy Storage Obligation is introduced, increasing from 1% in 2023-24 to 4% in 2029-30. This must be met using energy stored from renewable sources, with at least 85% of stored energy annually coming from renewables. This will also count toward the overall RPO.
The regulations delete several clauses from previous amendments and update references to the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission’s 2022 REC regulations. Violations of RPO will attract penalties as per the Energy Conservation Act.
These regulations will be enforced retrospectively from April 1, 2025, and will apply throughout Chhattisgarh.
