Page 2 - Power

AIPEF terms Centre's coal import-related directives an additional load

Power engineers' body AIPEF on Monday termed the Centre's import-related directives for the thermal plants as an "additional load" on the coal-fired power units. The Union Ministry of Power has issued a directive that all thermal power plants of state governments, central government and the private sector should import 4 per cent of coal by March 2024 to meet the shortage of coal in thermal power plants running on domestic coal, the All India Power Engineers Federation said in a statement. The Centre has said that in view of the increased demand for electricity, there is a gap of 2 lakh tonnes per day in August between the consumption and supply of coal in domestic coal-fired thermal power plants, it added. As per the order, "the reason for not getting adequate coal to the thermal power plants is due to the constraints of the Railways and in such a situation, putting an additional load of imported coal on the thermal power plants of the state is not appropriate," AIPEF said. AIPEF

Pakistan business community on strike over inflated electricity bills

Pakistan's business community on Saturday observed a shutter-down strike across the country to protest against the inflated electricity bills and rising inflation. Rightwing Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) and traders' groups gave the call for protest and they got support from lawyers. Commercial activities were halted in Karachi, Lahore and Peshawar, as well as in other cities, while public transport was largely off the main roads. In Karachi, the Tajir Action Committee (TAC) on Friday gave the government 72 hours to reduce high electricity bills and withdraw the recent hike in petrol prices. It warned that if the government failed to fulfil its demands, there would be a prolonged strike of 10 days. TAC Convener Muhammad Rizwan said there was no compulsion on anyone to join the strike. The Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) supported the strike call. However, its President Mohammad Tariq Yousuf said large-scale industries were not part of the strike. Federation of Pakistan Ch

Power returns to Kenya after 14 hrs, longest in recent memory; airport shut

Electricity was being restored in most parts of Kenya on Saturday, 14 hours after the longest outage in recent memory, the majority government-owned power distributor said. There was still no clear explanation for the outage that hit on Friday night, shutting down the country's main international airport, affecting major hospitals and even the president's office compound. I am really sorry for what has happened, Transport Minister Kipchumba Murkomen said in a statement close to midnight. There is no excuse worth reporting and there is no reason why our airport is in darkness. Kenya Power later on Saturday said it had restored service in most areas. The outage came just weeks before Kenya's government hosts the first Africa Climate Summit, where energy will be key on the agenda. Kenya gets almost all its energy from renewable sources, but infrastructure and alleged mismanagement remain an issue in the country of more than 50 million people. Kenya Power had announced in a brief ..

Odisha investing significantly to augment power infrastructure: CM Patnaik

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday said the Odisha government was investing significantly to augment the power generation and distribution infrastructure in the state. Addressing a function in which 412 candidates joined the state-run Odisha Power Transmission Corporation Ltd, Patnaik said reliable power supply is an indispensable entitlement of every citizen, and a basic ingredient of growth. "We must work for ensuring quality uninterrupted power supply to our consumers, farmers and industries," he told the recruits. Stating that his government has adopted the '5T initiative' to transform governance, Patnaik asked them to follow its mantra of teamwork, technology, transparency, time and transformation. "We will definitely achieve our goal of providing quality, secure and reliable power to all the people of Odisha," he said Among those who joined the OPTCL, 161 are electrical engineers, 54 office assistants and 197 electrical technicians. Lauding OPTCL for its works, Patna

Nepal to export 10,000 Mw power to India in next 10 years: PM Prachanda

Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal "Prachanda" on Friday said that his government plans to increase the export of electricity to neighbouring India from 450 MW to 10,000 MW in the next 10 years and the two nations have already signed a preliminary bilateral agreement for it. Addressing the 38th anniversary of the Nepal Electricity Authority here, Prachanda said that Nepal is transforming in the sector of hydropower and it will further create a conducive environment for attracting foreign investment. "Our country is preparing and waiting with keen interest for larger economic transformation through speedy development of hydro-electricity and its maximum internal consumption in the coming decade," he said. "Though Nepal is currently exporting around 450 MW of electricity to India we are aimed at taking the power export to 10,000 MW in the next ten years period for which Nepal and India have already signed a preliminary bilateral agreement," Prachanda said. Prachanda also mention

India can generate 65 Gw energy annually from waste, say experts

India can utilise the huge amount of waste generated throughout the country to produce 65 GW of electricity per annum, which can grow to 165 GW by 2030 and 436 GW by 2050, according to experts. India generates 65 million tonnes of waste every year, which is estimated to go up to 165 million tonnes by 2030 and 436 million tonnes by 2050 as per a white paper prepared at a two-day workshop of waste management experts held recently. About 75-80 per cent of the municipal waste gets collected and out of this only 22 to 28 per cent is processed and treated, the document noted. During the workshop, experts from International Climate Change and Sustainability Action Foundation, IIT, ISM Dhanbad, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), and industries came together to discuss the way forward to deal with the issue of mounting waste dumping sites. India has 3,159 active waste dump sites accounting for about 20 per cent of the country's methane emissions, said the white paper which also provi

More than 1.1 million smart meters installed in UP till March: Minister

The Uttar Pradesh government's power department installed more than 11 lakh smart meters since the project began in 2018, Energy Minister AK Sharma said in the assembly on Wednesday. The data shared by the minister was updated till March 20. "From the start of the installation work till March 20, 2023, 11.79 lakh smart meters were installed in the state. In this period, 72,846 complaints were received regarding the meters. Of these complaints, 56,681 were found true after which the meters were changed," he said in reply to a question by Samajwadi Party member Atul Pradhan. "Of the total 56,681 meters that were changed, 52,250 were out of order while 4,431 were changed due to other technical reasons," he added. On a query that the meters were generating higher electricity bills, the minister said it is not the case. "The bills are generated on the basis of exact power consumption," the minister said. About 1,005 complaints were received about smart meters running fast. Of these, 9

TPDDL clocks highest peak power demand of 2,182 MW this season so far

Amid humid weather, power discom TPDDL clocked its highest peak demand of power in this season so far on Tuesday afternoon, the company said. Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL), which has a customer base of 1.9 million in North Delhi, successfully met the demand of 2,182 MW, said a company spokesperson. "This has successfully demonstrated that our customers' increasing energy needs were taken care of without any network limitations or power disruptions," he added. According to State Load Dispatch Centre, Delhi's peak power demand was 7,279 MW at 3 PM. The peak demand in the TPDDL distribution area was 2,163 MW last Friday, when Delhi registered its highest peak demand of the year at 7,398 MW.

Sultry weather pushes peak power demand in Delhi to year's record high

The sultry weather in the national capital pushed the peak power demand in the city to 7,398 MW Friday afternoon the highest this year so far. The State Load Dispatch Centre (SLDC) Delhi's real time data showed that the peak demand was 7,398 MW at around 3.10 pm. The peak power demand measures the power consumption in megawatt at any given time within 24 hours of a day. The previous highest peak demand in this year was 7,226 MW on June 14. The highest even peak power demand of Delhi was recorded at 7,601 MW in June last year, officials said. The power discoms in the city have estimated the peak demand to shoot up to 8,100 MW this season. The demand was successfully managed by BSES discoms - BRPL and BYPL- in their respective distribution areas, said a company spokesperson. A Tata Power Delhi Distribution Ltd (TPDDL) spokesperson said the peak demand was 2,163 MW in the discom's area that was met successfully, without any network constraint and power outage. The peak power demand

SJVN's 2 plants in Himachal produce 50.5 mn units of power in one day

Power producer SJVN has achieved record single-day generation of 50.498 million units from two hydro power stations in Himachal Pradesh, the company's CMD Nand Lal Sharma said on Tuesday. The 1500 MW Nathpa Jhakri Hydro Power Station (NJHPS) achieved a new milestone of 39.527 MU of power generation, surpassing its previous record of 39.526 MU on August 29, 2022. The Rampur Hydro Power Station (Rampur HPS) achieved 10.971 MU of power generation, breaking its previous record of 10.954 MU on July 16, 2023, Sharma said in a statement. Both plants recorded their respective highest power generation levels on July 17. "SJVN has established a new all time high record of 50.498 MU in single day power generation from its two flagship hydro power stations in Himachal Pradesh," Sharma said. The milestone is the result of efficient management, optimum operation and maintenance practices as well as proper repair and maintenance of the project components which has contributed in achieving maximu

Diversification of agriculture towards energy, power need of hour: Gadkari

Stressing that diversification of agriculture towards energy and power sectors is the need of the hour, Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Monday asked Uttar Pradesh to move ahead in hydrogen production so that the country could become an energy exporting country. The Union minister also said that Uttar Pradesh, which was once regarded as 'bimaru pradesh', is moving towards development now and hailed Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for improving the law and order of the state. "Diversification of agriculture towards the energy and power sector is the need of the hour and to make our farmers prosperous, Uttar Pradesh has sugarcane farmers in large numbers. "The Narendra Modi government has made policies to change the future of the farmers and it is bringing a change," the minister said. He was speaking after jointly inaugurating two national highway projects worth over Rs 3,300 crores in the state capital with local MP and union Defence Minister Rajnath ..

DISCOM conducts maintenance of electrical lines to prevent accidents

As a part of a pre-monsoon safety drive, the DISCOM is conducting inspections and maintenance of electrical equipment and lines installed in public areas to minimise the risk of electricity-related incidents here, an official statement said. The drive aimed to ensure the safety of DISCOM consumers was carried out in view of the two deaths due to electrocution in Delhi within a span of 48 hours. As a part of the ongoing preventive maintenance activity, the DISCOM is conducting tree trimming exercises in the vicinity of electrical installations, poles, and overhead lines to prevent leakage current and power interruption, it said. According to the statement, DISCOM has recently conducted leakage testing of 9,154 poles, 300 PWD/MCD poles, 66 ATMs, and 81 streetlight poles installed in MCD and DDA parks, and the same drive shall be continued. Due attention is being given to ensuring the healthiness of the earthing of electrical installations. "The DISCOM has also carried out safety aud

Centralised Cell to be set up for sale and purchase of power: CM Sukhu

The Himachal Pradesh government would come up with a policy to attract private sector investment in the hydropower sector and a centralized cell will be set up for efficient management of sale and purchase of power to increase revenue, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said on Friday. Hydropower development is the key engine to the economic growth of the State as it makes a direct and significant contribution to the economy in terms of revenue generation, employment opportunities and enhancing the quality of life, he said in a statement issued here. It also aims to harness and commission 10,000 MW of hydro and renewable energy by 2030 to have an operational capacity of around 21,000 MW. Sukhu said that apart from power generation, the government was laying special focus on its distribution and sale of electricity. The State Government is laying stress on prioritizing revenue generation for the Himachal Pradesh Power Transmission Corporation Limited (HPPTCL) through its ...

NHDC to construct 525 MW pumped storage power project in Khandwa, MP

The power ministry said the project is being executed to meet the increasing peak-hour demand for energy in Madhya Pradesh

Telangana spends Rs 12k-cr per year to give free power to farmers: CM KCR

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Sunday said his government has been spending Rs 12,000 crore annually for providing free power to farmers in the state. Speaking at a public meeting here, the Chief Minister said the food processing industry will be a focus area after the Assembly polls in Telangana. "In order to strengthen the farming community and make agriculture a fruitful venture and see smiles on farmers' faces, the government is spending Rs 12,000 crore annually to provide free power to you (farmers)," Rao, also known as KCR, said. He cautioned the people not to entertain opposition parties stating that if they come to power, then BRS' flagship schemes like free power, 'Rythu Bandhu' financial aid for farmers and 'Dalit Bandhu' for Scheduled Caste members to start enterprises will all go away. "People should decide whether the party which will abolish these schemes should come into power or we (BRS) should continue," he said addressing the people at the ...

Power consumption grows marginally by 1.04% to 136.56 bn units in May

Power consumption rose marginally by 1.04 per cent to 136.56 billion units in May this year as widespread rains have kept summer temperature under check so far and people used fewer cooling appliances compared to last year. In the year-ago period, power consumption stood at 135.15 billion units (BU), higher than 108.80 BU in May 2021, according to government data. The power consumption was also affected in March and April this year due to widespread rains in the country. Experts said that unseasonal rains in March, April and May affected the power consumption in the country. The power ministry has estimated the country's electricity demand to touch 229 GW during this summer season. But the demand has not reached the projected level during April-May this year mainly due unseasonal rains. Rains reduced the demand for electricity as people used fewer cooling appliances compared to the previous year, according to experts. Further, experts are hopeful that power consumption and demand

Vietnam govt approves plan to cut power output from coal-fired plants

The Vietnamese government has approved a plan that needs $134.7 billion to reduce coal-fired electricity generation and improve the country's power grid by 2030

Rajasthan facing power crisis due to failure of state govt: Union minister

Union Minister of State for Power Krishan Pal Singh on Tuesday said that the people of Rajasthan are facing a power crisis due to the failure of the state government. He said that there is no shortage of electricity in the country as in the neighbouring state Haryana, 24 hours electricity is being made available in the villages and cities. "The production of electricity in the country is double its consumption. There is no shortage of electricity. The centre is ready to provide as much electricity as Rajasthan wants, but due to the failure of the state government, the people of Rajasthan are facing a power crisis," the minister told reporters here. He was here to take part in an 'unemployment fair' under which 71,000 appointment letters in different government departments were given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi through video conferencing. "In the neighbouring state of Haryana, 24-hour electricity is available in the villages and cities. Then why is the crisis in Rajasthan only?

Electricity in Punjab to cost more, opposition leaders slam the move

Electricity rates are set to go up in Punjab with the power regulator PSERC announcing an increase in power tariff by 25 to 80 paise per unit for different categories of consumers. Opposition parties Congress and Shiromani Akali Dal slammed the move, saying it was the AAP government's "first gift" to people two days after it won the Jalandhar Lok Sabha bypoll. Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission Monday announced a new tariff order for 2023-24. The new tariff order will be applicable with effect from May 16. Shortly after the PSERC decision, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said that the revised tariff would not impact the common man as the increase would be borne by the government for free power to domestic category consumers and farmers. As domestic consumers get 300 units per month of free electricity, any increase in charges will be borne by the state government. Meanwhile, electricity consumers consuming over 300 units per month will have to bear the burden on account o

Renewable energy's future in India to depend on innovation: Official

Future of renewable energy in India will depend on innovations and storage cost, stressed a top government official pointing towards unviable price of storing energy at present. This assumes significance in view of India's ambitious target of having 500 GW renewable energy by 2030. "The future of (renewable) energy is totally dependent on innovations and storage cost coming down, less space (for energy storage), utilize high energy density, and materials (used to produce energy storage), which are available safe for us," said Advisor to Prime Minister of India, Tarun Kapoor addressing at a conference 'India Energy Storage Week' here. Referring to recent tenders on energy generation bundled with storage, he pointed out that the energy price was some Rs 11 per unit (including Rs 2.5 per unit cost of solar energy in addition to charges for storage). He noted that currently, renewable energy is 22-23 per cent (of total amount fed into the grid). He was of the view that renewable energ