Parli thermal power station has buffer stock of coal for two days: Official

The Parli thermal power station in Beed district of Maharashtra is left with the buffer stock of coal that will last for just two days due to short supply, a senior official said on Wednesday.

The Parli Thermal Power Plant is one of the coal-based power plants of Maharashtra State Power Generation Company (Mahagenco).

The Parli power station usually has the buffer stock of coal for eight to ten days. This plant requires around 6,000 tonnes of coal in a day but the current stock of coal is around 4,000 tonnes, the power plant official told PTI.

"Each of the three power generating units at the power station can generate 250 MW of power every day. The project runs with the full capacity in the peak hours daily in two sessions, each lasting for three hours. Currently, one of the three power generating sets is shut for the yearly maintenance while two others are functional," said Chief Engineer Mohan Awhad.

Speaking about the daily need of coal, Awhad said the Parli thermal power station requires one-and-a-half rakes of coal, which is around 6,000 tonnes, to produce the required electricity.

"Currently we are getting 4,000 tonnes of coal every day," he said.

When asked about the reason for the sudden shortage of coal, Awhad said coal mining areas have received heavy rainfall which has damaged the roads connecting these coal mines to trains. "We expect the situation to improve after October 15," Awhad said.

He said the Mahagenco needs around 25-26 rakes of coal per day to produce the desired 7,000 MW power in the state.

"However, Maharashtra is currently getting the coal supply of 16-18 rakes. We expect two rakes of coal to reach Parli by Thursday morning," he added.

Apart from the Parli plant, the Mahagenco operates coal-based power plants at Chandrapur, Koradi, Khaparkheda, Bhusawal, Nashik, Akola and Amravati.