The Hindu : New Delhi News : ‘Alternative means for producing energy needed’

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Tuesday, Jan 22, 2008
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New Delhi

‘Alternative means for producing energy needed’

Smriti Kak Ramachandran

NEW DELHI: Re-installation of the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation’s gas platform has restored supply of fuel to the power generation plants and upped the energy production capacity in the Capital, but experts in the power sector say generation companies need to take lessons from the situation.

Experts say the recent shortage of power in the Capital caused by the shutdown of an ONGC gas platform could have been avoided if the generation companies had made provision for using alternative fuel for generation.

According to these experts, generation companies need to ensure that power generation units are equipped to produce gas and liquid fuel based energy.

No efforts

“Gas turbine plants have provisions for both gas-based and liquid fuel-based generation. But unfortunately no efforts have been made to maintain the plant and make it work on an alternative fuel in the absence of gas. The generation companies failed to make use of a facility they had at hand,” said an expert.

“Unlike gas that cannot be stored, it is much easier for the companies to store liquid fuel. They need to have tankers installed to store the liquid fuel, which can be easily procured from any refinery,” he added.

Pointing to the advantages of running plants on dual fuel, the expert said the recent shortfall of gas that in turn caused a power shortage should serve as an example. He cited the example of NTPC, where power is generated by dual fuel.

Liquid fuel

“To meet the demand for power that had fallen considerably, the Power Department had to ask NTPC to produce more energy from liquid fuel. If the same had been carried out at gas turbine plant and the Pragati plant, Delhi’s own generation would not have been hit so hard.”

On January 4, a dip in gas supply from ONGC had led to a shortfall in power generation. With the restoration of the gas platform, the city’s generation that had fallen to about 1,100 MW, rose to 1,297 MW on Monday. The gas turbine plant produced 120 MW of power, while Badarpur thermal power plant generated 638 MW, Indraprastha 77 MW, Pragati 329 MW and Rajghat 104 MW.

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