In Brief
Ajmer Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited sought to recover electricity charges from Hindustan Zinc Limited under an open access agreement. A regulatory commission later amended the agreement, changing how charges for inadvertent power drawals were calculated. The Supreme Court held that while parties agreed to abide by future commission notifications, substantial modifications to commercial agreements cannot be given retroactive effect if they prejudice the parties. The amendment was a substantive change—not a mere clarification—and applied only from the amendment date (15 September 2007), not from the original agreement date. The appeal was dismissed; deposited amounts were to be adjusted against future bills.
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