It applies online to the Central Transmission Utility under the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission's 2022 connectivity regulations. A study decides whether new transmission is needed, connectivity is granted in principle and then finally against bank guarantees, and a connectivity agreement is signed. The right to move power over the network is a separate grant, called general network access.
Two grants, not one
A power project needs two separate permissions from the inter-state transmission system, and the regulations treat them separately.
Connectivity is defined as the state of getting connected to the inter-state transmission system. It is the physical connection: a bay at a substation, a line to it, and the protection and communication equipment that make the connection safe.
General network access is defined as open access to the inter-state transmission system. It is the right to move power across the network. A temporary version, temporary general network access, covers shorter periods.
Both are governed by the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Connectivity and General Network Access to the inter-State Transmission System) Regulations, 2022. They were published in the Gazette of India on 7 June 2022, and most of them came into operation on 15 October 2022 by a Commission notification of 9 October 2022, with some provisions commencing later. The nodal agency for both is the Central Transmission Utility.
Who can apply for connectivity
The regulations as notified list the entities eligible to apply:
- a generating station, including a renewable one, with or without storage, of 50 MW and above, individually or in aggregate through a lead generator or lead storage entity
- a captive generating plant able to inject 50 MW and above into the inter-state system
- standalone energy storage of 50 MW and above, individually or in aggregate
- a renewable power park developer
- a renewable generating station or standalone storage of 5 MW and above that connects through the electrical system of a station already connected, under an agreement to share it
Separately, general network access can be sought by a state transmission utility on behalf of entities in its state, by a distribution licensee or bulk consumer connecting directly with a load of 50 MW and above, and by a few other categories.
The steps, in order
Apply online. The application goes to the nodal agency online and is digitally signed. An application for connectivity carries a fee of Rs 5 lakh plus applicable taxes, and an application for general network access carries the same.
Fix any deficiency fast. The nodal agency points out deficiencies within one week. The applicant has one week to correct them. If it does not, the application is closed and 20 percent of the fee is forfeited.
Monthly batches. All connectivity applications received in a month, up to midnight on its last day, are processed together, with priority by date and time of receipt where that is needed.
Interconnection study. The nodal agency studies each batch against the technical standards of the Central Electricity Authority and works out whether the inter-state system needs augmenting. The study counts as existing any transmission already awarded for implementation by the last day of the month in which the complete application was received. The part of any augmentation needed for immediate evacuation of an applicant’s power, excluding terminal bays, becomes its associated transmission system.
In-principle grant. If no associated transmission system is needed, the in-principle grant comes within 30 days from the end of the month of application. If one is needed, it comes within 60 days, and it names that system, the terminal bays and the estimated cost.
Bank guarantees and final grant. The applicant then furnishes connectivity bank guarantees as the regulations specify. The final grant follows within 15 days of receiving the required guarantees.
Connectivity agreement. The applicant sends its technical connection data. The nodal agency replies within a month with connection details such as protection, recording, SCADA and communication equipment. The connectivity agreement is signed within 30 days of that reply, and signing it makes the applicant a connectivity grantee. Where connectivity is at a proposed substation, the final coordinates are confirmed within two months of signing and cannot be more than 5 km from the tentative ones.
Why the timing matters to a project
Connectivity decides when a site can deliver power, and the sequence above runs on calendar months. An application received on the first day of a month waits for that month’s batch, and the transmission system the study counts as existing is fixed by the last day of the month of application. Land, finance and supply contracts for a project are usually arranged around an expected date of first power, so the connectivity timeline sits under all of them.
The same logic applies to a buyer. An industrial consumer planning to take renewable power through open access is relying on the generator having connectivity and the network having room, which is why the evacuation plan is one of the first things worth checking on any site.
Check the current text
The Commission has amended these regulations since 2022, and the thresholds and timelines above are from the regulations as notified. Read the current consolidated text and the Detailed Procedure for Connectivity and GNA on the Commission’s and the Central Transmission Utility’s websites before relying on any figure. Connections within a state follow the state commission’s own regulations.
Related questions
- Can a project smaller than 50 MW connect to the inter-state system?
- Under the 2022 regulations as notified, a renewable generating station or standalone storage of 5 MW and above can apply for connectivity through the electrical system of a generating station that already has connectivity, if it has an agreement with that station to share its electrical system and dedicated lines. Smaller sites otherwise connect within the state, under the state's regulations. The thresholds have been amended since 2022, so check the current text.
- What is the associated transmission system?
- When the interconnection study finds that the inter-state system needs augmenting, the part of that augmentation needed for immediate evacuation of the applicant's power, excluding the terminal bays, is treated as the associated transmission system for that applicant. Whether it is needed decides how long the in-principle grant takes and what the applicant has to secure.
- What happens if the connectivity agreement is not signed in time?
- The nodal agency may extend the time by up to 30 days. If it is still not signed, the final grant of connectivity is revoked, and the regulations provide for the connectivity bank guarantees to be encashed or returned depending on which guarantee it is and whether construction has been awarded.