Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy instructed the officials of the Energy Department to properly assess the demand and accordingly plan ways to meet it so that the prevailing crisis could be put to an end at the earliest.
He suggested that while trying to fulfil the requirement of industries, an action plan should be chalked out to prevent power shortage next summer as the sector would otherwise be crippled.
Necessary steps should be taken to ensure a continuous supply of coal to the thermal plants, and focus should be laid on commissioning the 800 MW units at Dr Narla Tatarao Thermal Power Station (NTTPS) and Sri Damodaram Sanjeevaiah Thermal Power Station (SDSTPS) at the earliest, he said.
Officials told the Chief Minister that the coal crisis was not limited to Andhra Pradesh (A.P.) but was a worldwide problem. There were indications from the Central government that coal availability and supply chain issues were likely to persist for the next couple of years.
Non-availability of rakes was hampering the coal supply and another reason for the shortage was the lack of vessels that could import the fuel from abroad. While the prices of coal skyrocketed, the demand for it grew exceptionally.
Further, the officials informed Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy that the rebound in the economic activity and the rise in temperatures were responsible for the spurt in demand for electricity. The peak demand ever recorded in the State was 12,293 Million Units (MU) on April 8. On an average, ₹36.50 crore was spent per day on power purchases in March and ₹34.08 crore a day so far this month.
The Chief Minister said an additional 45 MU would be available over the next three years consequent to the agreement recently signed with the Solar Energy Corporation of India. The new units at NTTPS and SDSTPS, coming on-stream, would be of tremendous help to meet the surging demand for electricity, he said and wanted speedy execution of the 1,350 MW new hydel power project at Sileru.
Tenders
Officials said tenders for the Sileru project would be invited soon and that the 800-MW unit at SDSTPS was poised for commissioning latest by July-August. They also said the Polavaram power plant works were going on at a brisk pace and it would give a big boost to generation in the State.
Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy said the AP-Genco’s power plants should be operated at 85% PLF as by doing so, not only enough generation could be achieved but also the costs could be brought down.
He advised the officials to explore the possibility to set up pumped storage hydropower plants at 29 places in the State. These plants would add 33,240 MW to the installed capacity.
Minister for Energy Peddireddi Ramachandra Reddy, Chief Secretary Sameer Sharma, Energy Secretary B. Sreedhar and NREDCAP MD N.V. Ramana Reddy were among those present.
