Grid failures a trigger to fasten sectoral reforms: Tata Power

Company says expanding electricity generation capacity is the only option

Country's largest private electricity producer Tata Power today said there cannot be a better trigger than this week's grid failures to speed up reforms for ushering in more investments into the sector.

Asserting that grid failures are avoidable, Tata Power noted that expanding electricity generation capacity is the only option.

"There could not be a better trigger to set off reforms for the power sector reforms enabling increased investment into power generation to help meet the country's 12th Five Year Plan target of 88,000 MW," Tata Power Managing Director Anil Sardana said in a statement.

Pushing the country into a major power crisis, three major grids -- North, Eastern and North Eastern -- tripped on July 31 afternoon, affecting more than half of the population. The failure happened less than 24 hours after Northern Grid was restored following its collapse on July 30 early morning.

"There needs to be enforcement of automated and co-ordinated relay system as also strict governance on frequency regimes to avoid grid failures similar to the one experienced over the last few days...," Sardana said.

He noted that management of distribution companies have to be made accountable for 24x7 reliable supply and fiscal management.

Tata Power, which is implementing the country's first ultra mega power project at Mundra in Gujarat, said reforms related to fuel supply needed to be addressed on an immediate basis.

According to Tata Power, islanding scheme -- of having separate electricity transmission services for certain areas -- could help in addressing problems arising out of failure of grids.

The islanding scheme, pioneered by the company in 1981, has helped Mumbai consumers every time grid failures happened since 1995, the statement said.

"This islanding scheme has worked brilliantly for Mumbai consumers achieving a 100% success rate in each of 16 occasions that there have been such grid failures since 1995," it noted.

Sardana pointed out that even during the existing grid failures, Tata Power's Jojobera (Jamshedpur) units islanded themselves with Jamshedpur load and continued operations.

"Similar concept needs to be implemented with load end generation for most of the generating units which are linked to such configuration of loads," he added.

Meanwhile, once fully operational, the 4,000 MW Mundra UMPP would help in meeting about two% of country's energy needs, the statement said.

Currently, Tata Power has an installed generation capacity of 6,099 MW.