Amid power crisis due to acute shortage of coal at thermal power plants in Punjab, the state has forced power utility Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) to cut power generation and impose rotational load shedding at several places.
A PSPCL official said on Saturday that coal-fired power plants are running at low capacity due to shortage of coal.
A PSPCL official was quoted as saying by the news agency that with the power situation turning critical, coal reserves are left with power plants in the state for five days. PTI.
“The plants are running at low capacity,” the official said. He said that they are not being run at full capacity to conserve coal.
Presently, the power demand in Punjab is around 9,000 megawatts (MW).
Officials said that apart from the demand for power from the agriculture sector, the high temperature during the day is also increasing the power requirements in the state.
Though PSPCL officials claimed minimum load shedding, there were reports of power cuts between two-three hours at many places in the state.
The official said three private sector power plants are getting coal supply for two days, while state-owned Ropar Thermal Plant and Lehar Mohabbat Thermal Plant have coal stock left for four and five days respectively.
As per the guidelines of the Central Electricity Authority, power plants located at a distance of more than 1,000 km from a coal mine should always have a minimum coal stock of up to 30 days, but this level of stock is not maintained by power plants in the state.
On Friday, the power plants had received some coal supplies to run their operations, the official said.
In view of less generation of power, PSPCL is procuring power through power exchange, but its cost is high ₹10 per unit which is quite expensive, the official said.
PSPCL Chairman and Managing Director A Venuprasad said that they have written to the Center to increase the supply of coal to the state.
Officials claimed that the situation is expected to return to normal in the next few days.
Earlier today, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said that there is hardly a day’s stock left with some of the major coal-fired stations that supply the city.
“Delhi may face power crisis,” Kejriwal said.
with agency input
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