The Indian electricity sector is at the cusp of transition. Facilitated by continuous policy thrusts, this transition, however, has not changed much on the ground as the growth of electric distribution utilities is still marred by conventional bottlenecks such as bad debts, shortage of funds, and a poor balance sheet. In this context, this study evaluated the efficiency of a selected set of 45 electricity distribution utilities in 21 states in India during the period 2018–19, using a two-stage analysis. First, an input-oriented data envelopment model with constant returns to scale was employed. Second, a regression analysis was performed to test whether efficiency scores influence such utilities’ financial viability, represented by the gap between average cost of supply and average revenue realized. The results indicated that there is a need to improve efficiency, as most of these utilities are technically inefficient. The analysis showed that a total cost-saving potential of around 2,387 billion Indian rupees could be achieved through efficiency improvements alone. Regression analysis highlighted that variables other than the efficiency of utilities such as aggregate technical and commercial loss and agricultural consumption as a percentage of total consumption contribute positively to utilities’ financial strength; hence, they should be prioritized by policymakers.

印度电力行业正处于转型的风口浪尖。然而，在持续的政策推动下，这种转变并没有太大改变，因为配电公用事业的增长仍然受到坏账、资金短缺和资产负债表不佳等传统瓶颈的影响。在此背景下，本研究使用两阶段分析评估了 2018-19 年期间印度 21 个邦的一组选定的 45 家配电公司的效率。首先，采用规模报酬不变的面向输入的数据包络模型。其次，进行回归分析以测试效率得分是否影响这些公用事业的财务可行性，表现为平均供应成本与实现的平均收入之间的差距。结果表明需要提高效率，因为这些公用事业中的大多数在技术上效率低下。分析表明，仅通过提高效率就可以实现约 23,870 亿印度卢比的总成本节约潜力。回归分析强调，公用事业效率以外的变量，如技术和商业总损失以及农业消费占总消费的百分比，对公用事业的财务实力有积极贡献；因此，决策者应优先考虑它们。回归分析强调，公用事业效率以外的变量，如技术和商业总损失以及农业消费占总消费的百分比，对公用事业的财务实力有积极贡献；因此，决策者应优先考虑它们。回归分析强调，公用事业效率以外的变量，如技术和商业总损失以及农业消费占总消费的百分比，对公用事业的财务实力有积极贡献；因此，决策者应优先考虑它们。