Shares of Indian Energy Exchange slipped another 2% on Tuesday, January 20, as investors remained cautious ahead of a fresh hearing on the market coupling case at the Electricity Appellate Tribunal (APTEL).
The stock had seen choppy moves on Monday after counsel for the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) told the APTEL bench that market coupling would not be implemented until proper regulations are put in place. Earlier in the day, Power Minister Manohar Lal Khattar also stated that there was no change in the government’s stance on market coupling, adding to the uncertainty around the issue.
APTEL is hearing IEX’s plea seeking withdrawal of CERC’s July 2025 directive on day-ahead market coupling. In an earlier hearing, the tribunal had asked CERC to clarify whether it intended to withdraw the directive, though no final conclusion was reached at that stage. Ahead of that hearing, CERC issued a circular stating that its July 2025 communication should be treated as a “direction” and not an “order”.
IEX has argued before the tribunal that the directive is arbitrary and violates principles of natural justice. The exchange has maintained that market coupling would lead to a loss of market share without delivering any tangible benefits to the power market.
Earlier, on January 6, CERC’s counsel informed APTEL that the regulator was willing to take instructions from the tribunal to withdraw the July 2025 directive. Following this, the counsels sought additional time, leading APTEL to schedule January 9 as the next date of hearing. The tribunal observed that if CERC formally conveyed its intent to withdraw the directive, the matter could be closed the same day.
During a hearing on November 28, IEX had also referred to a report by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) alleging that certain CERC officials were involved in insider trading and had made illegal gains of Rs 173 crore. IEX told the tribunal that the market coupling directive, which had triggered a 29% fall in its share price in a single session, was part of an alleged insider trading conspiracy.
The exchange further claimed that the directive was tainted and said the market regulator had identified the author of the market coupling proposal, keeping investor sentiment cautious ahead of the latest APTEL hearing.