CHENNAI: State discom Tangedco said it’s managing the coal shortage by switching between thermal and renewable power production through the day. A top official said Tangedco shuts down several units in a few thermal power plants during the daytime and uses renewable sources such as solar and wind power to meet the demand. The units would be switched back on at midnight to generate power in early morning hours. The official, however, accepted that they could not avoid power cuts.
The official told TNIE that while the price of domestic coal stands at $85 a tonne, that of imported coal is $137. That’s a stark difference from the $49.02 a tonne rate between March and April 2021. The official said tenders have been finalised to import 4.8 lakh tonnes coal and Tangedco will start receiving shipments of this deal from May second week. Coal India Limited (CIL) is also supplying coal to Tangedco. The utility has also started paying dues to CIL, the official said. Sources said Tangedco owes CIL `823.92 crore.
Another official told TNIE that Tangedco, which requires 72,000 tonnes of coal a day, is purchasing coal from Talcher, IB Valley, and Singareni coal mines. By Sunday, it is expected, Tamil Nadu will have coal stock of 3.80 lakh tonnes.
Rakes still a problem
Twenty-two railway rakes a day are required for moving 72,000 tonnes of coal to Paradip and Vishakhapattinam ports. But, only 14 rakes a day are currently being provided to the State. Recently, Chief Minister MK Stalin wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking to raise this number.
On Friday, the railways cancelled 700 passenger train trips to speed up movement of coal wagons to power plants. It also cancelled a few mail and express trains till May 24. Tangedco officials said more rakes are likely to be allotted to TN in the coming days.
Power demand in India
According to data from the Grid Management Authority, the country’s power demand stood at 205 GigaWatt (GW) on Thursday. It reached 207 GW on Friday. The peak power deficit in India was 10.8 GW on Friday. In 2012, it reached 12 GW, the highest so far.
State sets new record
Tamil Nadu on Friday recorded its highest-ever power consumption for a second consecutive day. A total of 388.01 Million Units (MU) were consumed on Friday. The previous highest consumption was 387.047 MUs recorded on Thursday. The State’s power demand was 17,370 MW on Thursday, and on Friday, it reached 17,563 MW, which is the highest in Tangedco’s history.