Peak power shortage in Aug'13 narrows to 2.7%: CEA

Southern states were worst affected in August 2012 with a deficit of 17.7 per cent improved drastically to 2.7 per cent in the same month this year

Good monsoon coupled with rise in renewable power generation have brought down the peak power deficit in the country to 2.7 per cent in August this year.

India witnessed a peak power deficit - shortage in electricity supply when the demand is maximum - of 2.7 per cent or 3,555 MW in August, as per the latest data by CEA (Central Electricity Authority). The deficit was a whopping 9.6 per cent in the same month last year (2012).
    
The Southern region - Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh - that was worst affected in August 2012 with a deficit of 17.7 per cent improved drastically to 2.7 per cent in the same month this year.

     

As per the data, the peak power shortage in the southern states stood at 931 MW, or 2.7 per cent, this year as against 6,236 MW in August 2012.
     
"There are a host of reasons responsible for this phenomenon like good monsoon and rise in electricity generation from non-conventional sources of energy (wind, solar) especially in the Southern region," a CEA official told PTI.
    
He added that the air-conditioning and agriculture load drops with good monsoon which plays a major role towards improvement in the peak power deficit.
     
States in the country's northern region including Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi recorded a deficit of 988 MW or 2.3 per cent.

     
This region reported a peak power deficit of 3,745 MW or 8.9 per cent in the same period, last year.
     
The eastern region, comprising West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha etc, also showed improvement in the power shortage from 6.2 per cent (940 MW) in August 2012 to 2.2 per cent (351 MW) this year.
     
However, the peak power deficit in the seven-sister states of North-east India - Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland - deteriorated to 11 per cent from 8.7 per cent in August 2012.
     
The western region states including Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra reported 3 per cent peak power deficit last month from 3.8 per cent in the same period last year, the data showed.

     
While, the peak electricity shortage in the month of July stood at 4.5 per cent or 5,745 MW, also on account of good monsoon.