Monsoon deluge bails out hydel sector in Telangana

With 33 percent excess monsoon rainfall this year, Telangana has achieved record hydroelectric generation. Major projects like Srisailam and Nagarjuna Sagar maintained over 75 percent storage, helping TSGENCO record a 42 percent rise in output to 6,040 million units

Hyderabad: With the southwest monsoon delivering 33 percent excess rainfall totalling 988.3 mm so far this year, farmers, who otherwise struggled to meet the fertiliser needs of their crops, could find some relief, being less dependent on water release from irrigation sources. With the State receiving the highest rainfall of the decade, irrigation projects can now prioritise hydroelectric generation. Major projects like Nagarjuna Sagar and Srisailam, which had reached critical levels beyond the normal monsoon withdrawal schedule of mid-September, are holding over 75 to 80 percent of their gross capacity even in mid-October.

The Kharif dependence on projects and their canal networks has reduced by 40 percent, even in rain-fed districts like Adilabad and Nizamabad. The excess rainfall has naturally irrigated 45 lakh acres, preventing crop stress for paddy, cotton, and maize. Making use of the monsoon advantage, the Telangana State Power Generation Corporation (TSGENCO) has stepped up hydel output, dispatching an additional 1,787 million units (MU) from June 1 to October 15, marking a 42 percent year-on-year rise to 6,040 MU. Peak generation touched 1,248 MW on August 15, with Srisailam’s 270 MW unit for the State alone yielding 1,950 MU and Nagarjuna Sagar 2,150 MU.

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Even the plant load factors rose to 35 percent (from 25 percent in 2024), showing the gains from the upgrades made during the BRS regime. With all hydel units operating at full scale this year, the State’s 5,000 MW hydel generation target by 2030 seems within reach. The strong performance of hydel units during June 1 to October 15 was driven entirely by surplus river flows. Generation across all units reached 6,040 MU, a 42 percent increase from 4,253 MU in 2024, according to official data. The boost was due to the fact that the State reservoirs and joint projects continued to hold over 80 percent of their gross storage capacity this year, against 60 percent in 2024.

This helped the State prioritise power generation over irrigation. The plant load factors have improved across the board, averaging 35 percent in 2025 compared to 25 percent in 2024. Between June 1 and October 15, Telangana’s hydroelectric power projects generated about 2,075 million units of electricity, a significant rise from 1,257.64 MU produced during the same period in 2023–24, and 1,193 MU in 2022–23. The Srisailam LBPH generated 795 million units between June 1 and October 15, 2025, as against 734 MU during the corresponding period in the previous year.

Power generation for the June 1 to October 15, 2025, period stood at 660 MU at the Nagarjuna Sagar Main PH, 46 MU at the Nagarjuna Sagar Left Canal PH, 165 MU at Jurala Main, and 170 MU at Lower Jurala, with the total amounting to 2,075 MU. The 2025 season saw near-full storage at Srisailam, Nagarjuna Sagar, and Jurala, leading to round-the-clock generation. Hydroelectric plants contributed over eight percent of Telangana’s grid supply during June to October 2025, compared to about four percent in the financial year 2023–24. The modernisation of Nizamsagar and Pochampad units, which added 5 MW to each, improved efficiency by 10 percent in early 2025.