SC accepts settlement between Adani power and GUVNL

The Supreme Court on Tuesday accepted a settlement deed between Adani Power (Mundra) and Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam (GUVNL) over supply of 2,000 MW electricity to the state discom.

Adani Power has also withdrawn its demand for over Rs 10,000 crore compensatory tariff as sought before the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission.

As per the settlement deed of January 3, Adani has agreed to relinquish compensation from the discom, which in turn has undertaken not to terminate the PPA of February 2, 2007, which was upheld by the top court in 2019.

While disposing of the curative petition by GUVNL, a five-judge Constitution Bench led by Chief Justice N V Ramana closed the case after Attorney General K K Venugopal, representing GUVNL, and Adani’s counsel Mahesh Agarwal sought modification of the apex court’s decision of July 2, 2019 as they had arrived at an out-of-court settlement in a dispute over termination of the February 2007 PPA for supplying electricity.

The AG said that in terms of the settlement deed, the 2007 agreement between Adani Power and GUVNL shall stand revived and “the termination will not be given effect to. The company shall also not press for the compensatory tariff and they will continue to supply electricity to GUVNL. So, what hurt the state discom has been withdrawn,” he added.

The apex court was initially reluctant of closing the proceedings, saying "once we take up a curative petition, we can modify our verdict only after we look at merits of case".

The Attorney General, however, asked the SC to use its special powers vested under Article 142 of the Constitution to dispose of the case.

In its July 2019 judgment, a three-judge bench comprising Justices Arun Mishra (since retired) B R Gavai and Surya Kant said that Adani Power was justified in terminating the PPA since it could not get coal supply on time from the Naini block of Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation (GMDC).

The court had then allowed Adani to seek a compensatory rate for the electricity it had alternatively supplied to Gujarat from its Korba power project in Chhattisgarh.

Watch the latest DH videos: