Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Splendid ‘rain year’ for KSEB this time

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: This has been a splendid ‘rain year’ so far for the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) with the hydro-electric reservoirs in the State receiving water inflow equivalent to 8,551.80 million units of electricity between June 1 and November 20.

The KSEB maintains inflow data on ‘rain year’ basis, the counting beginning on June 1 and ending on May 31 the subsequent year, the dates signifying the cycle from one south-west monsoon to the next.

The annual inflow is considered normal if it is equivalent to around 6,000 million units. This means that the current ‘rain year’ has already brought 40 per cent extra inflow. The six months from December to next May, still left in the current cycle, constitute the dry phase of the cycle. The total inflow position, therefore, cannot be expected to go up substantially from the present level.

A question being debated in the State at the moment is whether the plentiful rainfall received will enable the KSEB to avoid a hike in electricity tariff this year.

The KSEB, in its submission to the State Electricity Regulatory Commission earlier this year, had proposed an upward revision in tariff for certain sections of non-domestic power consumers.

The proposal was based on the assumption that the energy requirement for the year would be in the region of 14,000 million units, of which only 6,000 million units would be low cost hydro power.

With more quantity of low cost hydro power actually becoming available, can the KSEB finish the year without the proposed tariff hike?

The KSEB admits that the good inflow is a big relief. However, there are several intricate factors governing the pattern of electricity consumption across a single day and across the year. This necessitates judicious management of the hydro-thermal mix of the power released into the grid.

The excess inflow to the reservoirs will not translate into a proportionate financial relief for the institution.

For instance, the total storage capacity of the reservoirs is equivalent to only about 4,000 million units of electricity.

The KSEB had to use up as much water as possible from the reservoirs during the rainy season itself to minimise wastage due to dam overflow.

Much electricity had to be sold outside during the time of the rain when the cost recovery was not so attractive (as in the dry months) due to similarly high hydro power generation in other States.

The State Electricity Regulatory Commission has already completed its mandatory hearings on the KSEB’s tariff revision proposal and is expected to announce its decision soon.

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