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Electricity supply in India is the sole responsibility of the Government of India and the states. The Union Government controls the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), the main regulatory body, and the central generating companies, which are:
- National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC)
- National Hydro-Power Corporation (NHPC)
- Nuclear Power Corporation (NPC)
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These are bulk power generators who sell their entire output to state-run utilities.
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The states control the State Electricity Boards (SEBs), which generate power and account for most of the distribution in the country. The states have also licensed five private power utilities for generation and distribution, which are:
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Tata Electric Companies (TEC) comprising of Tata Power, Tata Hydro, and Andhra Valley Power, which generates and distributes power in Bombay,
- BSES, which generates and distributes power to the suburban areas of Bombay,
- CESC which generates and distributes power to the city of Calcutta,
- Ahmedabad Electricity Company which generates and distributes power to the city of Ahmedabad,
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The bulk of electricity generation is however, managed by the SEBs. The five private power plant utilities (also referred to as the as licensees), generate at least a portion of the power distributed by them.
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The licensees have monopoly distribution rights over predetermined geographical areas and they can not distribute power beyond these regions without government consent. However, they do not face any threat of competition within their licensed areas till the expiry of the licenses.
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