New CERC norms from April 1

From tomorrow, operators of power grids of all state power utilities across the country will have to abide by a more stringent frequency range as notified by Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC), or face severe penal measures.

The ideal frequency to be maintained by all operators of power grids will start from 49.2 hertz as against 49.5 hertz at present. This had been notified in a bid to enforce greater grid discipline and to curb over withdrawals, informed Pramod Deo, chairman, CERC.

Typically 50 hertz should be the ideal frequency where demand matches supply.

If frequency of a grid falls below 49.2 hertz then demand load is more than supply and if frequency goes above 50.3 hertz then there is oversupply compared to demand which ideally should not be the situation, pointed out Malay De, chairman and managing director, West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (WBSEDCL).

At present, an operator of a grid has to maintain 49.5 hertz. If there is excess load on a power grid than supply then the grid frequency drops and the grid is forced to shed load, this leads to collapse of the grid affecting supply.

In a bid to regulate and ensure greater grid discipline and prevent misuse, an ideal frequency has been notified by the CERC. The frequency at a power grid was directly related to the quality of power supplied and stringent measures were required to ensure greater grid discipline, said De.

If any operator indulges in any violation of the norm then CERC can even take punitive actions based on the report of the system operators in this case the state load despatch centres, which will monitor the grid frequency on a regular basis and notify all violations.