KOCHI: The Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) has projected a revenue gap of Rs1,000 crore this financial year, which may lead to tough measures like load shedding or an increase in power tariff. Under the present circumstances hydel power can be generated only till the middle of February. By March next year power has to be bought from other States at a higher rate, which could result in a tariff hike. Power minister A K Balan told Express that unless there was a restriction in consumption Kerala would go into a deep crisis. If the north-east monsoon and inflow to the reservoirs are not normal, the power crisis may be reported much earlier than February.
At present water available in the reservoirs can produce 2,400 million units of power. The Central allocation is 20 million units a day but for the past six months it has come down to 16 or 17 million units a day due to a crisis in power generation at the Centre.
If there is a crisis, the State Government will be forced to buy power at a rate of Rs 13.50 per unit and the burden will be imposed on the consumers. As there is no budgetary support from the government, the Board has to go in for tough measures, the Minister said.
The daily consumption in Kerala is 46 million units, of which 20 million units are from hydel sources, around 17 million units from the Central Government and eight million units from the thermal units. Though the revenue gap is projected at Rs 1,000 crore the Central Electricity Regulatory Authority has fixed the gap at Rs 130 crore provided the monsoon is normal this time too.
When climatic conditions were favourable for Kerala in the last two years, power worth Rs 1,500 crore was sold to the Central Government.
However, the situation has changed now with the State on the verge of deep crisis due to climatic changes.
KSEB is on an effort to create awareness among the public and industries of the need to reduce consumption through various means. The Board is planning to distribute two crore CFL in Kerala at a cost of Rs 15 each which could save 300 mega watts of power every day in Kerala, Balan said.