Water scarcity may hit thermal power 

Water scarcity may hit thermal power 

Context

New report by the World Resources Institute (WRI)

Findings of the report

• Risk of outages to Thermal power plants: India’s thermal power plants, about 90% of which rely on fresh water for cooling, risk facing serious outages because of shortage of water
• Shutdowns: Between 2013 and 2016, 14 of India’s 20 largest thermal utility companies experienced one or more shutdowns due to water shortages and this cost the power producers more than ₹91 billion ($1.4 billion) in potential revenue from the sale of power
• India lost about 14 terawatt-hours of thermal power generation due to water shortages in 2016, cancelling out more than 20% of growth in the country’s total electricity generation from 2015
• Water stress in water abundant areas: Some of the most disruptive water shortages occurred in India’s most water-abundant areas. Even in water-abundant or low water-stress regions, thermal plants can still face water shortage-related risks during droughts or when monsoons are delayed. Some of those plants — for example, Farakka, Raichur, and Tiroda — experienced significant, if not the biggest, disruptions in generation caused by water shortages

Problem of Water stress

• Water stress is the ratio of total water withdrawal over available supply
• About 40% of the country’s thermal power plants are facing great stress in terms of water availability
• According to the report, not only does high water stress result in equipment shutting down, it also results in a lower level of efficiency when it is running
• When power plants rely on water sourced from scarce regions, they put electricity generation at risk and leave less water for cities, farms and families. Without urgent action, water will become a choke point for India’s power sector
• Freshwater-cooled thermal power plants that are located in high water-stress areas have a 21% lower average capacity factor, compared to the ones in low and medium water-stress areas

Predictions of WRI’s report

• Water stress is set to worsen as India’s thermal power sector expands and demand for water from other sectors increases. It says that by 2030, 70% of India’s thermal power plants are likely to experience increased competition for water from agriculture, industry and municipalities

Positive step

The Government of India has recently mandated limits for specific water consumption at thermal power plants, which is a critical step forward

Way forward

Government should also create policy incentives for water conservation. This will help encourage water efficiency and innovation across the power sector