Kerala government’s minister for power and electricity K Krishnankutty on Monday said that the government will decide on imposing loadshedding after October 19. Krishnankutty also said that Kerala is facing a shortage of 100MW currently.
“The state is trying to meet the demand-supply gap through an automated management system and also by purchasing electricity at higher prices. The government will take a decision on imposing power cuts on October 19,” Krishnankutty was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
The state power minister on Sunday said that the government will have to resort to loadshedding in case shortage of power from the Central pool continues. He said that on Sunday Kerala received only 30% of its daily quota from Koondankulam.
Coal shortage, which could have been caused due to excess rainfall hitting coal movement and imported coal-based power plants generating less than half of their capacity due to record high rates, sparked fears in few states and Union Territories of blackouts.
The Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) officials last week said that a shortage of 15% was manageable but once the shortage exceeds beyond 20% then the department will have to think about load-shedding.
“We are experiencing a shortage of 120 MW to 900 MW on certain days. Today, the estimated shortage is around 200 MW,” the officials said on Sunday where they assured that the state will not resort to load- shedding right away.
“Currently, it’s manageable. Due to rains these days, the power consumption during the peak hour has come down,” a KSEB official was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.
Meanwhile in Delhi, power minister Satyendar Jain said the National Thermal Power Corporation(NTPC) plants halved power supply to the Capital. “NTPC which supplies us 4000 MW power has reduced it to half currently. This has led us to generation of power through gas that costs ₹17.25 per unit,” Jain said.
Punjab chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi vowed not to let power cuts affect his state and said that he has asked Centre to ensure adequate supply of coal.
