CHENNAI: Senior officials of the state power utility told TNIE that they had warned the Tamil Nadu government, as early as July, that electricity demand could go up, but the warnings were allegedly ignored, forcing the state to now pay up to Rs 37 per unit for emergency power.
The Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corporation Limited (TNPDCL) floated tenders to procure power for the period from October 12 to 31 only on October 6; by then, cheaper power available in the market had already been secured by other states. For instance, Andhra Pradesh finalised a short-term power purchase agreement on September 9, securing power at Rs 16-Rs 20 per unit for October.
Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu has finalised agreements to procure 1,000 MW of power at Rs 35 per unit from October 15 to 31. The power will be used only during evening peak hours and midnight hours. Recently, Electricity Minister C T R Nirmal Kumar said that the procurement was expected to increase the power utility’s expenditure by around Rs 5 crore to Rs 7 crore a day.
According to officials, the utility could have saved at least 50% of this additional expenditure if it had procured power through short-term tenders in advance. This comes at a time when the state’s power-sector entities had a combined outstanding debt of Rs 2.47 lakh crore as of March 31. A senior official with knowledge of the procurement discussions, speaking on condition of anonymity, said officials had raised concerns over the prolonged summer-like conditions and unexpected weather changes in July when suggesting advance procurement to meet the demand. The minister could not be reached for comment.
Tamil Nadu Spinning Mills Association (TASMA) chief adviser-cum-CEO K Venkatachalam said utilities should forecast demand and float tenders early to avoid dependence on costly emergency purchases. “By the time Tamil Nadu floated its tenders, cheaper power available in the market had been exhausted,” he said.
Bharatiya Electricity Engineers Association general secretary E Natarajan said Tamil Nadu should have used the Central Electricity Authority’s Resource Adequacy Plan (2024-25 to 2035-36) to anticipate demand and plan procurement. He said, “Long-term power purchase tenders must be floated early based on this report. The state must also forecast its power requirements through its own studies and float tenders in advance.”
