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Periodical review of standard charges and exceptional charges.
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54.—(1) The railway tribunal shall review the standard charges and exceptional charges of the amalgamated company at the end of the first complete financial year after the appointed day, or, if the appointed day is the 1st day of January in any year, at the end of that year, and unless directions are given by the Minister to the contrary in manner hereinafter appearing, at the end of each succeeding year, and the review shall be made on the experience of the operation of those charges for the period during which the standard charges have been in operation, or, if that period is more than three years, then on the experience of the operation of those charges during the preceding three years.
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(2) The Minister may direct as respects any year after the second annual review that a review shall not be held provided that no such directions shall be given as respects any year for which the amalgamated company or any representative body of traders has applied to the Minister for a review.
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(3) If on any such review the railway tribunal finds that the net revenue or the average annual net revenue obtained, or which could, with efficient and economical management, have been obtained by the company during the period on the experience of which the review is based is substantially in excess of the standard revenue of the company with such allowance (if any) as appears to the railway tribunal necessary to remunerate adequately any additional capital which may have been raised or provided in respect of expenditure on capital account incurred since the date upon which the standard charges were fixed in the first instance, the railway tribunal shall, unless it is of opinion that owing to change in circumstances the excess is not likely to continue, modify all or any of the standard charges and make a corresponding general modification of the exceptional charges of the company so as to effect a reduction of the net revenue of the company in subsequent years to an extent equivalent to eighty per cent. of such excess.
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(4) If on any such review the railway tribunal finds that the net revenue or the average annual net revenue obtained by the company during the period on the experience of which the review is based is less than the standard revenue of the company, with such allowance (if any) as appears to the railway tribunal necessary to remunerate adequately any additional capital which may have been raised or provided in respect of expenditure on capital account incurred since the date upon which the standard charges were fixed in the first instance, and that the deficiency is not due to lack of efficiency or economy in the management, the railway tribunal shall, unless in its opinion owing to change of circumstances the deficiency is not likely to continue, make such modifications in all or any of the standard charges and such a corresponding general modification of the exceptional charges of the company as it may think necessary to enable the company to earn the standard revenue with such allowance (if any) as aforesaid.
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(5) Whenever on any such review such an excess as aforesaid is found, then, for the purpose of subsequent reviews, sub-section (3) of this section shall have effect as if for the standard revenue there were substituted a sum (hereinafter referred to as the “increased standard”) equal to the standard revenue with the addition of twenty per cent. of such excess, and whenever on any such subsequent review an excess is found above the increased standard together with the allowance (if any) for additional capital, then, for the purpose of subsequent reviews, the increased standard shall be increased by a sum equal to twenty per cent. of such excess, and so on:
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Provided that, if at any time after such an excess has been found, the standard charges and exceptional charges are modified in pursuance of sub-section (4) of this section on account of a deficiency, no such substitution shall be made until an excess above the standard revenue together with the allowance (if any) for additional capital is again found.
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(6) The railway tribunal, when modifying charges on any such review, shall have regard to the like considerations as when fixing charges in the first instance:
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Provided that the tribunal shall have regard to the financial results obtained from the operation of any ancillary or subsidiary business carried on by the company, and if satisfied that the net revenue resulting therefrom is, having regard to all the circumstances, unduly low, may, for the purpose of such review, make such deductions from the charges which would otherwise have been fixed as they think proper.
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(7) The modifications of standard charges and exceptional charges made in pursuance of this section shall take effect as from the 1st day of July in the year following the last year under review or such other date as the railway tribunal may fix.
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