Hot News – Heatwaves are here. But this year, power ecosystem has coped well so far, thanks to GoI & states

Source: The post is based on the article “Hot News – Heatwaves are here. But this year, power ecosystem has coped well so far, thanks to GoI & states” published in The Times of India on 24th May 2023.

Syllabus: GS – 3: Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.

Relevance: About power demands.

News: Recently, the IMD issued heatwave alerts for several parts of southern and central India. Along with heat waves, power demand has surged. Despite the reports of outages in different parts of the country, the electricity ecosystem has coped well so far.

How power ecosystem coped with summer power demands?

Addressed administrative issues: The Central government last year addressed the issues associated with lax management. This facilitated the States, responsible for the supply and distribution of electricity, to have better control over the situation.

Better position of coal stock in power plants: Coal-based plants generate about 75% of the power. So, coal storage in plants is deemed critical if it’s less than 25% of the normative stock. Compared to the beginning of May, the coal stock position improved.

Tightened payment discipline: This led most states to revise power tariffs at the beginning of the financial year. Consequently, unannounced power cuts to cope with fiscal pressures have been resolved.

Reduction in dues of electricity distribution companies: The overdue after the trigger date was Rs 33 crore yesterday. This is a huge improvement in the situation a year ago.

What should be done to address future power demands?

Generally, power traded on the exchanges is around 4-5% of the total power generated. Thereby making it impractical for discoms to rely constantly on them. Further, the demand for air conditioners will increase further and put stress on power infrastructure. So, States need to build on their effort to create fiscal space to upgrade power equipment. The fiscal management of discoms is the key to address future power demands.