SECI Disburses Rs 10.3 Cr in GST Claims to 6 SPDs in May Payments

SECI has detailed that it has reimbursed six firms or SPDs (across their multiple subsidiary SPVs) for GST claims to the tune of Rs 10.35 crore.

The Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), the nodal agency for implementing renewable energy projects in the country recently published a list of all the payments (solar/ wind power procured, transmission fees, and GST rebates) it has made to solar/wind power developers for the month of May 2020. The agency has also detailed that it has reimbursed six firms or SPDs (across their multiple subsidiary special purpose vehicles) for GST claims to the tune of Rs 10.35 crore. With this payment, Power and MNRE Minister R.K. Singh can claim t have met a key promise made to the industry in recent interactions. Although, a counter view would of course be that problems that should not have arisen at all have been solved.   

The six firms that have been reimbursed include:

1. ACME Solar (ACME Vijayapura Solar Energy, ACME Koppal Solar Energy, ACME Karnal Solar Power, ACME Kaithal Solar Power, ACME Hisar Solar Power, ACME Bhiwadi Solar Power, ACME Babadham Solar Power, ACME Jodhpur Solar Power and ACME Rewa Solar Energy)
2. Azure Power (Azure Power Venus, Azure Power Thirty Six)
3. Phelan Energy India RJ
4. Fermi Solar
5. Wardha Solar (Maharashtra) (PSEPL Subsidiary)
6. Parampujya Solar Energy (Adani Green Energy Subsidiary)

It was in February 2019, that the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC), after hearing on the matter raised by local solar project developers, had issued an order accepting the Goods and Services Tax (GST) as a change in the law in case of Power Purchase Agreements (PPA).

The developers had petitioned for the central commission to declare the introduction of GST as Change in Law in case of the PPA(s) which had led to an increase in the recurring and non-recurring expenditure for the projects.

In July 2019, the CERC had officially passed another order in response to a petition filed by Parampujya Solar Energy (PSEPL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Adani Green Energy Limited, and Wardha Solar (Maharashtra) Private Limited (WSPL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of PSEPL.

Earlier in March, MNRE issued a circular stating that GST and Safeguard Duty compensation to solar project developers should be paid within 60 days. The circular by MNRE was addressed to SECI and NTPC, and it warned that if the compensation is not made within two months, a late payment surcharge may be imposed, or the payment can be made on an annual basis spread throughout the power purchase agreement (PPA) tenure.

In the latest list of GST payments reimbursed by the nodal agency, four payments have been released under the “Reimbursed to SPD for GST Claim as per CERC Order”, while the other 15 payments have been for GST Claims filed under the Annuity Method.

Click here to take a look at the full list of payments made by the nodal agency for May 2020.