Hyderabad: Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), said that it has been left in a ‘precarious’ situation by the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) with regard to payments for maintaining streetlights in the city. EESL said that the GHMC currently has Rs 144 crore outstanding payments that have to be made, and that the situation has put ‘immense pressure’ on its resources.
“Despite this, EESL has continued to fulfill its commitment to the people of Hyderabad, ensuring that 5.48 lakh LED streetlights are maintained and operational across the city,” said EESL. In a press release, it added that although EESL’s contract is valid until April 2025, GHMC has issued a tender for the procurement and supply of 15,000 new streetlights at a cost of Rs 3 crore to meet its obligations, without settling EESL’s dues.
EESL is a joint venture of NTPC Limited, Power Finance Corporation, Rural Electrification Corporation and POWERGRID, Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) was set up under the Ministry of Power, Government of India (GoI) to facilitate implementation of energy efficiency projects. The company claimed that GHMC’s new tender and delay in payments “are not due to performance issues”, and stated that it has consistently maintained the city’s streetlights and addressed complaints.
EESL in the release also said that it has been providing its services under the Energy Service Company (ESCO) model, where it took on the entire upfront investment, and in return was expecting monthly repayments from the GHMC to cover both capital and operational expenditures.
“Even with significant payment delays, the company has relentlessly maintained public safety by addressing 98.9% of the 2,18,422 complaints received in the past eight months. EESL has successfully replaced 44,753 faulty streetlights, and each day, between 600 and 700 defective LED streetlights are addressed and added to the maintenance inventory. It has also installed 3,600 new streetlights in the past two months to meet the city’s growing needs,” said EESL.
The company also said that between September 2018 and December 2023, 10,655 LED streetlights were damaged in the GHMC areas due to factors like lightning strikes, high voltage, unauthorised handling, and accidents. It EESL stated that these fall outside of its contractual obligations, which only cover manufacturing defects. “These damages were verified through joint inspections by both GHMC and EESL, but the matter remains unresolved,” it said.
“Despite the significant financial challenges posed by GHMC’s delayed payments, EESL remains steadfast in its commitment to the people of Hyderabad. However, the long-term sustainability of this project requires GHMC to honor its contractual obligations. We urge GHMC to release the pending dues promptly, as this will enable us to further enhance the city’s lighting infrastructure and meet the growing demands,” said Shri Ramesh T, state Head, EESL.
