Centre orders captive coal plants to run at full capacity from Oct 1

The power ministry invoked emergency provisions of the Electricity Act as electricity demand is expected to rise in coming months, while coal stocks remain low at several plants

India has ordered more than 100 captive coal-fired ​power plants to operate at maximum capacity from ​October 1 through year-end to meet what it expects will ‌be a rise in electricity demand.

The federal power ministry's order, invoked under emergency provisions of the Electricity Act, applies to plants with installed capacity of at least 50 megawatts.

The aim is to meet an "expected rise in electricity demand in the coming months," showed the order dated September 25 and seen by Reuters.

Nearly 40% of coal-fired plants are operating with critically low fuel stock due to a surge in ‌power demand as the El Niño climate phenomenon raises temperatures more than usual.

 

The plants primarily serve industrial facilities such as aluminium smelters, steel manufacturers, cement factories and oil refineries.

The power ministry has directed generators to sell surplus electricity through power exchanges.

The order covers 112 plants belonging to companies including Vedanta, Tata ​Steel, Hindalco Industries, JSW Steel, UltraTech Cement, Reliance Industries, Indian Oil, Bharat Aluminium, Hindustan ‌Zinc and Nayara Energy.

The ministry has ordered plants to report weekly to the Central Electricity Authority detailing generation, ​captive ‌consumption, power sales, available capacity and coal stocks.

Separately, the ministry has ‌extended an earlier emergency order requiring Tata Power's imported coal-fired plant in Mundra, Gujarat, to operate at full capacity until December ‌31, ​citing the demand ​situation.

Section 11 of the Electricity Act allows the government, under extraordinary circumstances, to direct generators to operate power stations ‌in accordance ​with its instructions.