Now, UP power body dumps Price Waterhouse
Deepa Jainani
Posted online: Jan 21, 2009 at 0047 hrs

LucknowPrice Waterhouse (PW), the Indian arm of consultancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and a strong favorite of the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation (UPPC), seems to have fallen out of grace. The UPPC, while inviting consultants to submit bids for advising the state government and preparing the blueprint for introducing the franchisee system in the transmission and distribution of power, has kept PW out, ostensibly because of the Satyam imbroglio. A UPPC official, who didn’t want to be identified, said, “We do not wish to be associated with a firm whose performance/role is under the scanner.”

Price Waterhouse was the consultant when UPPC was unbundled and at the time when the corporation took the World Bank loan. Though among the 11 top consultants listed by the central government, PW is not among the 10 invited by UPPC to submit bids by January 21. The 10 that have been invited are RITES, Crisil, Feedback Ventures, Ernst & Young, Abacus, Deloitte, Grant Thornton, Industrial Development Company, Chennai, IL&FS and International Finance Corporation. The name of the advisory consultant would be finalised on January 24.

According to an official close to the development, the move to keep PW out of the fray assumes significance as it has been closely associated with UPPC for many years now. “Ever since the state electricity board was unbundled, Price Waterhouse has been closely working with the Corporation, not only giving consultancy and playing an advisory role in all the projects that have been taken up by the Corporation, but also in the shortlisting and selection of new recruitments. In fact, the firm also has an office within the State Corporation headquarters,” said an official.

It may be mentioned that only last week the Mayawati government decided to introduce input-based franchisees in the power transmission and distribution system in urban areas.

The move is being seen as an effort to ensure better power supply at the consumer end and a means to better revenue realisation.
In the first phase, the state government has decided to appoint franchisees in the four cities of Kanpur, Allahabad, Varanasi and Bareilly, where line losses above 40% have been reported.