All articles

Third Amendment to the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Connectivity and General Network Access to the Inter-State Transmission System) Regulations

Blog Post Thumbnail

The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (“CERC”) issued the CERC (Connectivity and General Network Access to the Inter-State Transmission System) Regulations, 2022 on 07.06.2022 (“GNA Regulations”), with the objective of enabling non-discriminatory open access to licensees, generating companies or consumers for use of inter-State transmission (“ISTS”) system through the GNA framework. The GNA Regulations were subsequently amended on 01.04.2023 and 19.06.2023 vide the First Amendment and Second Amendment respectively. On 31.08.2025, CERC notified the Third Amendment to the GNA Regulations, which came into effect on 09.09.2025.

Background:

Prior to the introduction of the third amendment, CERC had issued two separate drafts of amendments to the GNA Regulations i.e., the draft third amendment issued on 31.07.2024, and the draft fourth amendment on 03.03.2025 (collectively, referred to as the “Draft Amendments”). The Third Amendment has been issued after taking into consideration the changes discussed in both the Draft Amendments.

Key Developments:

The key developments that have been brought into effect vide the third amendment by the Hon’ble CERC:

Newly defined terms:

New concepts like ‘Cluster of ISTS substations’, ‘Solar hour access’, and ‘Non-solar hour access’ have been created. A ‘Cluster of ISTS substations’ allows clustering substations for more integrated transmission planning and management. ‘Solar hour access’ and ‘Non-solar hour access’ grant differentiated access rights to renewable projects based on temporal generation profiles, facilitating optimal transmission utilization.

Withdrawal of connectivity application [Regulation 3.7]:

The Third Amendment specifies stage-wise consequences for withdrawal of connectivity or GNA applications:

  • If withdrawn before in-principal approval for the full quantum, 50% of the application fee is forfeited and the Bank Guarantee (“BG”) is refunded within 15 days;
  • For partial withdrawals (due to lack of capacity) before in-principal approval, proportionate BGs and land documents are released subject to minimum capacity norms;
  • After in-principal but before final approval, 100% of the application fee and 5% of the BG are forfeited, Connectivity BG 1(“Conn-BG 1”) is encashed and Connectivity BG3 (“Conn-BG 3”) is refunded;
  • After final approval but before execution of the agreement, 100% of the fee and 15% of the BG are forfeited, Conn-BG1 is encashed, Conn-BG3 refunded, and Conn-BG2 encashed only if the Associated Transmission System (“ATS”) or bays have been awarded, otherwise returned and;
  • In all cases, land documents linked to the withdrawn quantum must be released within 15 days.

Connectivity for Non-Solar Hours and Full Day Access [Regulation 4.5]:

The Third Amendment to the GNA Regulations now permits Renewable Energy Generating Stations (“REGS”) based on wind resources, with or without energy storage systems (“ESS”), as well as stand-alone ESS, to apply for connectivity on the basis of “solar hour access” and “non-solar hour access”. Accordingly, a wind-based REGS (with or without storage) or an ESS may seek connectivity with non-solar hour access for a capacity of 50 MW or above at the terminal bay of an ISTS sub-station, either:

  • through a separate dedicated transmission line or
  • through a bay already allocated to another REGS or renewable power park having solar access.

Notably, under Regulation 5.11 read with Annexure-IV, solar hour access is defined as “access with injection scheduling rights during solar hours for the quantum of connectivity and injection scheduling rights during non-solar hours for the capacity other than solar source, limited to the quantum of connectivity, together with drawal rights throughout the day” while non-solar hour access means “access with injection scheduling rights during non-solar hours and drawal rights throughout the day.”

Connectivity for REGS with Storage and Standalone ESS [Regulation 5.2 A]:

Under the Third Amendment, REGS equipped with storage must, while applying for connectivity, specify the maximum quantum of injection into the grid and the maximum quantum of drawal (for charging the storage) within the overall quantum of connectivity, determined with reference to the installed capacities of the REGS and the storage system. For a standalone ESS, the applicant is required to seek connectivity for a quantum equal to the higher of its proposed maximum injection into the ISTS or maximum withdrawal from it.

The ESS application must clearly indicate both the maximum injection to and the maximum drawal from the ISTS. Pursuant to the final grant of connectivity, these entities will be entitled to schedule power up to the maximum quantum of injection and drawal specified in their application and reflected in the grant.

Grant of Connectivity as per the Letter of Award (“LoA”) or the Power Purchase Agreement (“PPA”) [Regulation 37.10]:

For any REGS other than a hydro generating station or an energy storage system (excluding a pumped storage plant) may seek connectivity only up to the quantum specified in the LoA, the PPA, or the installed capacity mentioned therein, whichever is lower, in accordance with Regulation 10 of the GNA Regulations.

Any additional or balance capacity must be supported by land documents or appropriate BGs, as applicable. Moreover, where connectivity is granted on the basis of the LoA, the Connectivity Grantee defined in the Third Amendment as “an entity which has been issued a final grant of Connectivity and has signed the Connection Agreement (Cat-1) under Regulation 10” would be required to submit a copy of the executed PPA, along with the scheduled commercial operation date (“SCOD”) stipulated therein, within one week of signing the PPA.

Further, entities that have been granted Connectivity based on the LOA or PPA and who have already achieved Commercial operation shall furnish the land documents of the project within a period of one month from the date of effectiveness of these regulations.

Change in Control [Regulation 28.7]:

A specific bar on any change in control of a Connectivity Grantee from the date of its connectivity application until the project’s commissioning, has been introduced. Where the grantee is a single company, its promoters or shareholders must retain control and where it is a consortium, all members must collectively retain control. Any deviation from the above would require prior approval of the nodal agency (as defined in Regulation 3 of the GNA Regulations).

Flexibility to Change Land Parcels [Regulation 5.10]:

The Third Amendment allows REGS to change the land parcels (partly or fully) presented to the nodal agency at the application stage. The applicant is required to submit a formal request along with documents for new land parcels and identification of old land parcels which are sought to be replaced to ensure that the total land evidenced amounts to 50% (fifty percent) of the total land required for the project. However, there can be no change in the point of connectivity and the start date of connectivity due to implementation of the renewable energy project at different land parcels.

Exemption from Conn-BG2 Requirement [Proviso to Regulation 8.2 (a)]:

The Third Amendment removes the obligation to furnish Conn BG2 for certain circumstances which are as under:

  • where the applicant undertakes to construct the terminal bays on its own;
  • where connectivity is sought at a terminal bay already constructed or under construction by another connectivity grantee;
  • where a distribution licensee or bulk consumer seeks direct connectivity to the ISTS with a load of 50 MW or more; and
  • where the applicant seeks connectivity through the electrical system or switchyard of an existing generating station.

Change of Sources [Regulation 9.3]:

The Third Amendment permits renewable energy developers to change the source of generation for which in-principle or final connectivity has been granted, subject to strict conditions enlisted herein below:

  • the change must be made for the same quantum of connectivity;
  • the request must be filed within 18 months from the in-principle connectivity grant or at least 18 months before the effective date of the GNA, whichever is later;
  • no change is allowed if the 50% land requirement for the revised source exceeds the land already documented;
  • for entities with solar access, the change is allowed only to the extent that non-solar access has not been allocated to others; and
  • each connectivity grantee may avail this option only once. The nodal agency is to issue a detailed procedure specifying the conditions for effecting such change.

Start Date of Connectivity and SCOD [Regulations 9.1 and 10.5]:

The final grant of connectivity specify either a tentative or firm start date of connectivity. Where only a tentative date is given, the nodal agency must confirm the firm start date:

  • within six months of the final grant where connectivity involves augmentation of the transmission system (with or without ATS), based on the SCOD of the ATS and terminal bays; and
  • within six months of issuing the LoA for construction of the relevant ISTS substation, the nodal agency must also provide the final substation coordinates, terminal bay location, and single-line diagram.

Note: In the case of a renewable power park, its developer must communicate the SCOD of all constituent generation stations within three months of receiving the firm start date, failing which that firm date will be deemed the SCOD.

Utilization of Connectivity by Subsidiaries [Regulation 15.1]:

The Third Amendment clarifies that the connectivity granted to an entity may be utilized by its subsidiary(ies), or vice versa, only at the specific ISTS connection point for which such connectivity has been approved.

Relinquishment of Connectivity [Regulation 24.3A]:

The Third Amendment specifies stage-wise consequences for a connectivity grantee relinquishing its grant:

  • In case the connectivity is relinquished within six months of signing the connectivity agreement in that case 40% of the subsisting BGs furnished under Regulation 5.8 of the GNA Regulations, proportionate to the capacity relinquished, shall be encashed by the nodal agency, and the balance amount shall be returned. The Conn BGs will also be encashed to the extent applicable.
  • In case the connectivity is relinquished after six months of signing the connectivity agreement but before the last date for submitting documents under Regulation 11 A(1) in that case 75% of the subsisting BGs, proportionate to the relinquished capacity, shall be encashed, with the remaining amount refunded. The Conn BGs will similarly be encashed, as deemed appropriate.