Power generation disruption at thermal plants will not affect power supply in Telangana: Officials

The shutdown of the Bhadradri and Kothagudem Thermal Power Stations would not affect power supply with the State having sufficient power to meet the daily demand, officials of the energy department claimed on Tuesday.

Hyderabad: The shutdown of the Bhadradri and Kothagudem Thermal Power Stations would not affect power supply with the State having sufficient power to meet the daily demand, officials of the energy department claimed on Tuesday.

While the power generation at the Bhadradri thermal power station was disrupted due to a lightning strike, a boiler tube leak hit production at the Kothagudem Thermal Power Station. Due to the shutdown of the two plants, generation of about 1320 megawatt of power has stopped.

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According to Energy Department officials, the government had made arrangements to meet a daily demand of 15,000 megawatt, hence the shutdown of KTPS and BTPS units would not have much effect on the power supply.

“Currently the power demand in the State during normal hours is between 6,000 to 7,000 MW and during peak hours, it is 10,000 MW. We can meet power demand upto 15,000MW easily, hence the shutdown of two power plants does not matter a lot. Moreover over 50 percent of the State’s power needs are met through Central Generating Stations and open markets,” a senior official of TGTransco said.

Moreover, July was considered a lean period as there was very little agriculture activity, the official said, adding that the State had several options to procure power from different sources, including open market and through barter system. “During the Monsoon period, there is very less demand for power in South India. Hence, there is no need to worry as we are getting power at Rs.3 per unit from the Energy Exchange Limited (IEX),” he said.

However, it was found that the power supply through Genco-run thermal plants has come down from 68.376 million units to 39.115 MU in the last one week. On July 1, the power demand in the State stood at 204.089 MU and out of it Genco run plant’s contribution was just 39.115 MU and the rest was procured through central agencies, Singareni power plant and the open market.