With just about 54,000 MW capacity being added in the 11th Plan so far, the power sector is set to miss the revised capacity addition target of 62,000 MW in the current Plan period (2007-12).
"We have so far added 53,922 MW capacity in the 11th Plan period as on March 29," Power Minister Sushilkumar Shinde told reporters here today.
The capacity addition target for the 11th Plan Period ending March 31 was revised downward to 62,000 MW from the earlier target of 78,500 MW.
Acute fuel shortages and high coal prices have been hurting the capacity addition plans.
An official of the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) said the capacity addition in the 11th Plan is likely to be around 55,000 MW.
However, Shinde said the capacity addition of nearly 54,000 MW achieved in the 11th Plan period is much higher than 21,180 MW seen in the 10th Five-Year Plan (2002-07).
In the current fiscal, the capacity addition of 19,459 MW is the 'highest ever for any financial year", the Minister said.
According to the government, there are five projects -- having a total capacity of 1,885 MW -- are expected to be commissioned shortly.
Shinde said that a total of 875 billion units of electricity generation would be achieved this financial year, which would be 8% higher than 811 billion units seen in the previous fiscal.
Currently, the country's installed power generation capacity is 1,92,792 MW.
The capacity addition target for the 12the Five-Year Plan (2012-17) is about 76,000 MW.
