Mumbai, Oct. 26: Over 28 lakh power consumers in Mumbai will get the right to choose their power supplier and switch over to another utility if they wish to by next year, the facility — a first in the country — almost similar to flitting from one mobile phone operator to another.

The advent of choice — the great leveller that ensures better service — cannot be replicated in Calcutta and the rest of Bengal now because multiple suppliers are not at play in common areas in the state.

Officials in the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission said all consumers in suburban Mumbai, which has two power suppliers, could opt for the switchover once the framework was in place through a draft regulation that would be made into a law.

Some consumers in suburban Mumbai have already switched from Reliance Infrastructure to Tata Power Company for their monthly electricity supply. But a law is needed for mass migration.

The draft regulation could be ready by June next year, and would be placed before the Maharashtra Assembly for any objections, commission chairman V.P. Raja said today.

The facility has been in the offing for some time, but was delayed after Reliance Infrastructure and Tata Power differed on some issues, including whether old meters should be replaced.

The path for the changeover was cleared through an October 15 order of the commission which provided an interim solution ruling that old meters of Reliance Infra could remain intact, and customers switching to Tata Power would be billed according to those readings.

The interim order came after a August 2009 petition by Tata Power before the commission seeking approval of operating procedures for supplying power in common areas it shares with Reliance Infra.

Reliance Infra generates only 500MW of the 1,500MW required and purchases the rest from other utilities, resulting in a higher tariff rate. Consumers find Tata Power tariffs cheaper compared with the recently revised Reliance rates, and the utility claims to have received over 70,000 applications from consumers wanting to switch.

Mumbai International Airport Ltd had earlier moved the regulatory commission seeking permission to switch from Reliance to Tata as it could save Rs 36 crore. “Till about four days ago, 300 customers had successfully changed over from Reliance to Tata Power,” Raja said.

Both the distribution licensees have been asked to provide changeover application forms at their consumer service centres and on websites. No security deposit will be charged for a changeover and a no-objection certificate will not be required.