Mishandling of the crippling power crisis
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A delayed monsoon, floods in Orissa and Bihar have contributed to the severe power deficit
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Planners and power managers insist that the Central and State governments must push the option of alternative power sources at this juncture.
Most States in the country have gone through a bad summer and have yet to recover from a crippling power crisis. A delayed and elusive monsoon leading to poor hydel storage and consequently lower power generation, floods in Orissa and Bihar causing a disruption in the supply of coal, and the annual maintenance shutdown of some of the thermal power plants in some States have all contributed to this severe power deficit.
The situation reached such a stage in end-August that some of the States, notably in the South, started over-drawing of power from the grid. This sparked an unhealthy reduction in the grid frequency, triggering either an outage or a trip in supply. So much so, the Union Power Ministry not only intervened to stop this trend, but also convene a meeting to review the situation arising out of this crisis.
No option for SEBs
What was significant though was the fact that the State electricity boards (SEBs) were prepared to pay up a penalty fee of Rs. 10 a unit for drawing in excess of their share from the grid. That only meant they had no other option. Some of the usually power surplus States were also running short this year and could not offer any electricity to their deficient neighbours.
India already has a low per capita consumption of electricity — with perhaps only Africa ranking lower among the developing nations (see chart). China enjoys triple the per capita consumption as India — 1,802 kWh as against India’s 612. Even this cannot be maintained when the energy sector faces such a Catch-22 situation. For all that, the country’s installed power capacity is about 1.45 lakh MW, with 64.6 per cent of it coming from thermal stations — 93,114.64 MW. The share of hydropower is just 24.7 per cent of 36,158.76 MW. Every summer brings with it the annual quota of power and water shortage in many parts. With poor storage in the reservoirs, the hydel generation comes down substantially. The SEBs normally plan for their annual shutdown and maintenance of their thermal power stations during the monsoon season so that the hydel power could offset it and meet the demand. With poor storage this year, hydropower was no compensation, but the thermal stations had to close down for maintenance.
Emergency measures
Most States, especially in the South and including Maharashtra, announced a series of emergency measures to tide over the crisis. From a euphemistic ‘power holiday’ in Tamil Nadu, to announced and unscheduled load shedding in Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Maharashtra, it was a long and extended crisis, which is still continuing.
The State governments have been more considerate to the State capitals and urban centres than to the rural areas. The power cuts last for one to two hours a day in major cities, four hours or more in Tier-2 and Tier-3 towns, and eight hours and more in the villages and rural centres.
Industry sources say that production targets have gone awry because of power shortage. “Even if we want to run on generator, getting diesel remains a Herculean task. Regular industrial consumers have also faced a rationing in supply of diesel. We have to balance the use of power and diesel to operate two shifts and ensure delivery of products on time. In this exercise, our costs have mounted and the margins completely eroded,” explains B. Ravichandran, Chief Production Manager of a medium sized engineering industry. Industry sources say that the textile mills in the western region have been asked to shutdown one shift — or in practical terms, there will be power supply for eight hours and not necessarily at one stretch. How does a mill manage that?
Electricity board officials in a couple of southern States argue that they have no option. They were promised additional allocations from the Central sector, but could not get it to the desired extent because other States joined the deficit group. All private sector supply had already been tied up. “Our finances have gone for a toss this year. The government was willing to purchase power even at Rs. 10 a unit against the usual rate of Rs. 7 a unit during such crisis periods. We ended up with a gaping hole in the budget and no more power in the market, even through the Indian Energy Exchange,” says a Member (Finance) of an SEB. A former Chairman of the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board reasons: “We have always tended to under-estimate demand and project a normal supply. Obviously, we had a much higher demand and a much lower supply position this year. In our State alone, I think the deficit was well over 500 MW. In the South, it must have reached a shortfall of 1,500-2,000 MW. How does one bridge that wide a gap?”
Planners and power managers insist that the Central and State governments must push the option of alternative power sources at this juncture. SEZs, townships, gated communities, industrial parks, star hotels, corporate hospitals, and commercial complexes must be asked to go in for solar power or wind energy (where possible). Unless that initiative is taken at this stage, it may be difficult to meet the growing demand. Ultimately, power shortage could hurt the growth momentum, which has already taken a beating because of the inflation and tightening of monetary policy.
V. JAYANTH
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