KOCHI: Keralam may witness outages at nights this week as the national grid has reported a sharp decline in power availability even as consumption in the state saw a gradual increase due to hot and humid conditions.
In a statement on Wednesday evening, the KSEB said power regulations will be imposed for the day as the national grid has reported a deficit of 12,000 MW. However, senior officials said the restrictions may continue due to the widening gap between availability and demand during peak hours.
Keralam’s daily power consumption, which stood at around 80 million units (MU) two weeks ago, crossed 90 MU on Tuesday while the peak-hour consumption reached 4,850 MW the same night. With monsoon weakening and daytime temperature crossing 33 degrees Celsius, KSEB is facing a steep increase in power consumption.
The maximum power available for the state is 4,200 MW, of which 2,500 MW is procured via various power purchase agreements, while the remaining 1,650 MW is generated by hydel projects. Keralam is managing the peak hour demand by purchasing power from the Real-Time Market (RTM) at around Rs 10 per unit. However, more North Indian states have started purchasing power from the national grid, increasing competition and decreasing availability.
The Kerala State Electricity Regulatory Commission had in July approved the purchase of 200 MW of power at Rs 5.96 per unit. Another proposal to purchase 300 MW power for five years is pending before the commission. KSEB officials said if the commission approves it, it will ease the burden on the board. With peak-hour consumption nearing 4,900 MW, there is a shortage of 700 MW between 7pm and 12am. The maximum power available in the RTM on Wednesday was only 240 MW.
“With the strengthening of El Nino and weakening of monsoon, temperature is rising and power demand will be soaring in the coming days. The storage in dams has reached 64%, which is slightly better than the previous month, but lower than previous years. All hydel stations are running at full strength, generating 1,650 MW during peak hours,” said a senior KSEB official.
BUZZING DEMAND
Power consumption on Sept 1: 90.77 MU
Peak-hour demand on Sept 1: 4,850 MW
Power availability
Purchase from central generating stations: 1,500 MW
Long-term power purchase agreements: 775 MW
Medium-term power purchase agreements: 270 MW
Internal generation: 1,650 MW
Total: 4,195 MW
