Telangana: Power supply demand rises, Grid safe, assure officials

Out of the 59 Distribution Transformers (DTRs) that were affected by floods five were repaired and the work on the remaining was going on.

Hyderabad: TS Transco and Genco Chairman and Managing Director D Prabhakar Rao on Thursday assured that the power situation in the State was under control, and allayed fears of a grid collapse due to low demand for electricity.

“The grid is safe and can withstand fluctuations from 1,800 MW to 18,000 MW,” Prabhakar Rao told Telangana Today. “The weather department has warned of heavy rains for two more days. We are constantly monitoring the situation at the power dispatch centre round the clock, and are ready to tackle any emergency, be it a sudden spurt or further fall in demand,” he said.

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With incessant rains lashing the State for the past few days, the demand for electricity which should have been around 12,000 MW per day this time of the year dropped drastically to 2,660 MW, creating a demand-supply mismatch much to the concern of officials monitoring the power supply situation.
The situation, however, eased up a bit with demand shooting up to 4,184 MW on Wednesday and 5,283 MW by Thursday with the distribution companies starting to rectify faulty lines, erecting uprooted poles and restoring power to areas where flood waters were receding.

Meanwhile, the Telangana State Southern Power Distribution Company Ltd (TSSPDCL) that covers the GHMC area, Mahabubnagar, Narayanpet, Nalgonda , Yadadri-Bhongir, Suryapet , Siddipet, Medchal, Wanaparthy, Nagarkurnool, Jogulamba Gadwal, Sangareddy, Medak, Vikarabad and Rangareddy districts registered a spurt in power demand. It rose from 3,893 MW to 4,000 MW within hours on Thursday.

Similarly, the Telangana State Northern Power Distribution Company Ltd (TSNPDCL) that caters to Mancherial, Nirmal, Komram Bheem Asifabad, Kamareddy, Peddapalli, Jagtial, Rajanna-Sircilla, Warangal Urban, Warangal Rural, Mahabubabad, Jayashankar Bhupalpally, Jangaon, Bhadradri-Kothagudem, Adilabad, Nizamabad, Karimnagar and Khammam districts registered a demand of 1,435 MW during the same time.

“We are inching towards total restoration of power under the GHMC area. In all, 686 feeders were damaged in the heavy rains and flood waters. Out of this, supply to 671 feeders has been restored. By Thursday evening, the remaining feeders will also be restored,” TSSPDCL Chairman and Managing Director G Raghuma Reddy told Telangana Today.

He said that under GHMC area, a total of 15 33/11 KV substations that were submerged under flood waters were made operational after pumping out water and power supply was restored in several areas under GHMC. Of the 59 Distribution Transformers (DTRs) that were affected by floods, five were repaired and work on the remaining was going on. In all, 312 poles of 11KV and LT (Low Tension) capacity were uprooted out of which 249 were repaired and the remaining 63 will be taken up for restoration as and when the water in the affected areas recedes.

“There were reports that a large number of transformers were washed away in Musi flood waters in Nalgonda district. The problem was several farmers on the banks of the river had installed pumps to lift water from the river bed and they were attached to transformers. With the unexpected floods, the transformers close to the river banks may have been damaged,” he explained.

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