Torrential rain, landslides and flash floods have not prevented Keralam from facing a water crisis. The southwest monsoon triggered flashfloods that claimed 33 lives, swept away houses and damaged roads and bridges, yet rainfall is 28% below normal this year. The state is also seeing fewer rainy days, more localised extreme rainfall and temperatures crossing 35°C during the monsoon. The changed rain pattern has reduced groundwater percolation.
At the same time, Keralam is facing an acute power shortage. Peak demand has increased and generation is unable to catch up. With no major power project added in three decades, the state is increasingly dependent on power purchased from outside, often at high rates. Here we look at the key factors that have led the state to the current situaton.
Why is Keralam facing a power shortage?
The maximum available power is 4195 MW, but peak-hour demand crossed 6,000 MW in April 2026. Average peak demand was around 5,200 MW in September. The state generates only 1,650 MW and depends on the Central pool and long-term power purchase agreements to meet rising demand. Keralam gets 1,500 MW from the Central grid and 1025 MW through power purchase agreements.
The remaining deficit is managed by drawing additional power from the Day Ahead Market and Real Time Market, often at high rates. As the gap between demand and supply widens, the state has been forced to impose power cuts. From October 1, 2026, Kerakam started receiving 600 MW through short term purchase. This has reduced the burden.
How much power regulation are consumers facing?
Consumers have complained of multiple power cuts during night hours. The Keralam State Electricity Board (KSEB) has declared power regulations ranging from 15 to 25 minutes between 6.15 pm and 12.45 am. The regulations have triggered an angry response from consumers.
Why is rainfall important for Keralam’s power sector?
The state receives more than 3,000 mm of rainfall annually and has been highly dependent on hydel projects to meet its power requirements. Three-fourths of its annual rainfall comes during the Southwest Monsoon, 17% during the Northeast Monsoon and 8% during winter and the pre-monsoon period.
But the pattern of rainfall is changing. Rainy days are shrinking while localised extreme rainfall is increasing, making the weather less predictable. Experts also point to the steep topography of the state as a reason for its annual rain-related disasters.
The impact of El Niño is yet to be assessed. During the monsoon, daytime temperatures that normally remain below 30°C have crossed the 35°C threshold. The southwest monsoon has brought rain, but groundwater resources are under stress because the changed rainfall pattern has reduced the rate at which water percolates into the ground.
Why has Keralam not added major power projects in three decades?
Most of the major hydel projects were built between 1960 and 1990. The state had to abandon the 240 MW Silent Valley, 240 MW Pooyamkutty and 163 MW Athirappilly projects because of stiff opposition from environmental activists. Long-drawn legal battles also frustrated the authorities.
After the 1990s, KSEB decided to move away from major hydel projects and explored thermal projects to meet rising demand. The coal-based Cheemeni thermal power project proposed in 2009 was dropped after protests. The diesel-powered Brahmapuram project, commissioned in 1997, was shut down within two years because of its high operating cost.
The BSES power plant in Kochi and the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) plant at Kayamkulam were also closed after rising naphtha prices made generation unviable.
How did a state that once generated most of its electricity from its hydel resources become 78% dependent on outside power?
The state couldn’t start new hydel power projects due to opposition from environmental groups. The government launched small hydro projects of less than 10 MW each, which were insufficient to meet the growing demand. Attempts to start thermal power plants also failed to take off. Environmentalists say all these projects were planned in the ecologically sensitive forest areas which would have affected the state’s bio-diversity adversely. The projects would also have submerged evergreen forests, fragmented habitats and damaged bio-diversity.
What are the reasons for the present power regulations?
The gap between power availability and demand is widening. Maximum available power is 4,195 MW, while peak demand ranges from 4,800 MW to 6,000 MW.
Keralam has not been able to start new power-generation projects. The state depends on external sources for 78% of its power requirement, while internal generation accounts for 22%.
Power is not always available in the national grid because of rising demand and coal shortages.
A long-term agreement to purchase 465 MW at ₹4.29 per unit was cancelled.
What happened to the thermal projects?
The 2500 MW Cheemeni thermal project was abandoned following protests. Brahmapuram, BSES Kochi and NTPC Kayamkulam were shut down due to high generation cost.
What is the status of PM Surya Ghar project in Keralam?
Keralam has surplus power during day time thanks to PM Surya Ghar project. However, this additional power does not help to solve the power crisis doring night as there is no system to store the power. In the past eight years, Keralites have installed around three lakh rooftop solar power plants. They generate around 2,260 MW during the day.
KSEB cannot fully use this power because there is no Battery Energy Storage System to store the electricity for later use.
The three lakh prosumers [consumers who also produce electricity] export the additional electricity generated by their solar plants to the grid and receive Rs 3.5 per unit. According to KSEB officials, these prosumers use electricity heavily during peak hours, as they are entitled to draw the same quantity of power they sold to the board.
When can Keralam withdraw the power regulations?
Keralam started receiving an additional 600 MW through a short-term power purchase agreement from October 1, 2026. As rains began in North India, power demand there fell significantly. As the availability of power in the Real Time Market improved, KSEB hopes to avoid power cut soon.
However, declining storage in KSEB dams remains a concern. If the Northeast Monsoon fails because of the impact of El Niño and the dams reach dead storage levels, Keralam will have to depend entirely on imported power.
Can Keralam import more power from the Central grid and private power plants?
The country is also facing a power crisis. Coal inventories in 74 of 190 thermal power plants have reached critical levels. Chief Minister V D Satheesan has written to the Ministry of Power urging to increase the power allocation from Central Grid.
What is the El Niño situation?
The El Niño climate phenomenon is described as the strongest on record, based on monitoring of Pacific Ocean temperatures. Daily sea-surface temperatures in the central-eastern Pacific were 3.05°C above average on September 19, exceeding the previous record of 3.02°C set during the very strong El Niño of 2015.
The National Institute of Oceanography says the developing “Super” El Niño of 2026 is amplifying extreme-weather risks around the Indian Ocean basin. Meteorologists say a strong El Niño can simultaneously favour a wetter Northeast Monsoon over the southern peninsular region. A positive Indian Ocean Dipole can push moisture-laden winds towards the Indian subcontinent.)
What does the southwest monsoon record show?
Southwest Monsoon performance from June 1 to September 30 is as follows:
How much water is available in the major KSEB dams?
Storage in the major KSEB dams on September 30 was:
How much power can the existing dam storage generate?
The water storage in KSEB dams is sufficient to generate 2,551.34 MU power. MU means million units of electricity.
What does KSEB Chairman M G Rajamanickam say?
KSEB Chairman M G Rajamanickam says there is no quick solution to the crisis. The gestation period for a major project is a minimum of 10 years. He says Keralam is an environmentally sensitive state and every project has an environmental impact. Development has to be balanced with environmental protection. The question of how much can be compromised, he says, needs to be addressed through policy.
He says Keralam depends on external power for 78% of its requirement, while internal generation accounts for 22%. In contrast, he points to Andhra Pradesh, which generates around 86% of its demand internally, and Karnataka, where internal generation is 68%. Rajamanickam also asks consumers to regulate their electricity use and avoid charging vehicles and using equipment such as air conditioners and washing machines during peak hours.
What does former KSEB CMD Biju Prabhakar suggest?
Former KSEB Chairman and Managing Director Biju Prabhakar says the crisis is an opportunity for KSEB to implement structural reforms. He wants KSEB to be divided into three companies for better productivity. He calls for Battery Energy Storage Systems and pumped-storage projects to bridge the gap between demand and supply.
Private investors should be attracted to build pumped-storage projects, and KSEB should enter into long-term power purchase agreements with them. Transmission lines also need to be strengthened. Prabhakar says that during the past three decades, the focus shifted from internal generation to power imports. The KSEB power purchase bill, which stood at ₹8,000 crore three years ago, has crossed ₹13,000 crore and is expected to touch ₹18,000 crore this year.
What is the stand of technical experts of KSEB?
Former KSEB Chief Engineer (Generation) K R Rajan says Kerala cannot continue depending on imported power. He says projects have not been implemented because of protests by environmentalists. At the same time, there is opposition to thermal plants, nuclear plants and hydel projects. If all these options face opposition, he asks where Kerala will get its power from. Rajan says Kerala’s internal generation should be more than 50% of its demand.
What are the major existing power projects?
What is the plan to reduce dependence on outside power?
KSEB plans to implement 3,000 MW of pumped-storage projects in five years. It also plans 3,000 MW of Battery Energy Storage Projects by 2030.
Can Keralam establish a nuclear project?
The Keralam government is considering a proposal to establish a small modular nuclear plant at Cheemeni in Kasaragod district. The challenges include availability of land and opposition from environmental activists. A 220 MW plant would require around 800 acres of land and a 500-metre exclusion zone. In a state with high population density, finding the required land would be a challenge.