While power producers and distributors have warned of a blackout as production units are running with coal stocks for two days, the coal ministry said the country has sufficient coal stocks and low inventory does not mean that production should stop Because the stock is being replenished continuously.
India is in the grip of an energy crisis as some states, including Delhi and Punjab, are producing less than half their capacity due to the movement of coal and record-high rates of imported coal-fired power plants due to excessive rainfall.
Despite record coal production in the country this year, rains have affected power generation from mines to power generation units in several states including Gujarat, Punjab, Rajasthan, Delhi and Tamil Nadu.
While power producers and distributors have warned of a blackout as production units are running with coal stocks for two days, the coal ministry said the country has sufficient coal stocks and low inventory does not mean that production should stop Because the stock is being replenished continuously.
Another factor that has contributed to the current crisis is that power plants that use imported coal to generate electricity have either reduced production or shut down entirely as international energy prices soar. has made it difficult for them to meet the commitments of the states at a particular rate. .
low on power plant output
Power plants across the country controlled production after stocks ran low. According to the data, more than half of the country’s 135 coal-fired power plants have fuel reserves of less than two days, with nearly 70 per cent of the country’s total electricity supply needing to maintain stocks for 15 to 30 days. Is. from grid operator
However, the Coal Ministry said that the stocks reported by the power plants are rolling stock, which means that the stock is being filled day by day.
“The mines have coal reserves of around 40 million tonnes and power plants have reserves of 7.5 million tonnes,” a top ministry official said. “Drainage from mines to power plants has been an issue as mines are flooded due to excessive rainfall. But now this is being resolved and the supply of power plants is increasing.”
Read also | Delhi power crisis: CM Arvind Kejriwal writes to PM Modi, seeking intervention
Kejriwal wrote a letter to the PM
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying Delhi may face a “power crisis”. “I am personally monitoring the situation closely. We are trying our best to avoid it,” Kejriwal said.
Kejriwal tweeted, “Delhi may face power crisis. I am personally keeping a close watch on the situation. We are trying our best to avoid it. In the meantime, I have written a letter to the Hon’ble PM asking him to sought personal intervention.”
The letter also mentioned that depleting coal reserves in power generation stations leads to increased dependence on gas stations supplying electricity to Delhi. However, even the gas station that supplies electricity to Delhi does not have enough APM gas to run at full capacity.
state red flag
Punjab: Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) also cited the same reason for imposing 3-4 hours load shedding at many places in the state. PSPCL said two units each at Talwandi Sabo power plant, Ropar plant and one unit at Lehar Mohabbat, 475 MW plant have been shut down.
An official of Punjab State Power Corporation Limited said on Saturday that coal-fired power plants are running at low capacity due to shortage of coal.
An official of Punjab State Power Corporation Limited said that with the power situation turning critical, coal reserves are left with power plants in the state for five days.
“The plants are running at low capacity,” the official said. He said that they are not being run at full capacity to conserve coal. Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Saturday hit out at the Center for inadequate coal supply and feared closure of thermal power plants in the state in the next few days due to rapidly depleting coal supplies.
He said that Punjab was not getting enough coal supply despite agreements with various subsidiaries of Coal India Limited and asked the central government to immediately ensure the state’s quota of coal to tide over the power crisis.
RAJASTHAN RAJASTHANRajasthan is resorting to one hour power cut every day. The Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO) said power would be cut off in parts of Chennai to carry out maintenance work in the city.
Jharkhand And A state in Eastern India They are also most affected by the shortage of coal.
Andhra: In Andhra Pradesh, acute supply shortage was pushing it towards unscheduled power cuts, saying crops could dry up if electricity was not supplied to irrigation pumps. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, in a letter to the Prime Minister, said, “The final stage of harvesting requires more water and if this is denied, the fields dry up and farmers suffer. “
In OrissaThe industry was facing shortage of coal and had petitioned the state government to ensure adequate supply of fuel.
covid factor
As India’s economy boomed after the second deadly wave of Covid-19, the demand for electricity increased rapidly. Electricity consumption has increased by about 17 percent in the last two months alone as compared to the same period in 2019.
At the same time, global coal prices rose 40 percent and India’s imports fell to a two-year low. Despite having the fourth largest coal reserves in the world, the country is the second largest coal importer in the world.
(with agency input)
Read also | UN report warns of global water crisis amid climate change
.