BESCOM gets Red Card, scores lowest in National Power Utility rankings

Ministry of Power’s latest ratings place BESCOM at the bottom among Karnataka ESCOMs, raising serious concerns over finances, efficiency, and governance.

The Bangalore Electricity Supply Corporation Limited (BESCOM) has received a Red Card and a (-C) grade in the 14th Annual Integrated Rating and Ranking of Power Distribution Utilities, released by the Ministry of Power. The assessment places BESCOM at the lowest position among Karnataka’s five electricity supply companies (ESCOMs).

The comprehensive report evaluated 54 state and private power distribution utilities across India. Based on performance across 15 parameters and nine disincentive indicators, utilities were graded on a 100-point scale. The highest rating, A+, carried six stars, followed by A (five stars), B (four stars), B- (three stars), C (two stars), and (-C) with one star.

In Karnataka, none of the five ESCOMs, BESCOM, HESCOM (Hubballi), MESCOM (Mangaluru), GESCOM (Kalaburgi), and CESC (Mysuru), managed to secure a place among the top 20 power utilities in the country.

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Among them, MESCOM ranked 26th with a score of 56.44 and a B grade, showing major improvement from its 13th ranking score of 32.24 and C grade, reflecting better financial management and service delivery. CESC stood at the 44th position, while BESCOM remained at the bottom with a base score of just 28.94 out of 100.

Additionally, BESCOM attracted special disincentives amounting to minus 16.50 points out of a possible minus 66.5, which significantly pulled down its overall grade.

The evaluation criteria included cash flow management, financial health, power losses, debt-to-asset ratio, billing efficiency, collection performance, corporate governance standards, and the extent of loss absorption by state governments.

Despite being the largest electricity distributor in Karnataka, accounting for 55% of the state’s total energy sales, BESCOM has failed to generate profits. For the financial year 2024–25, BESCOM reported total revenue of ₹33,375 crore, marking a 2% year-on-year increase, but posted no profit after tax.

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Experts associated with the state government termed the ranking an “alarm bell” for Karnataka’s power sector, pointing out that structural weaknesses and the absence of a central holding company to monitor finances and resource distribution across ESCOMs have worsened the situation.

They also highlighted that the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) lacks supervisory powers over ESCOMs, limiting its ability to enforce operational discipline. In HESCOM and GESCOM regions, heavy dependence on agricultural power supply, which yields lower revenue, further strains finances.