Page 24 - Power Sector

NERPC meet takes decision on key issues of Northeast's power sector

The 24th Technical Coordination Committee meeting of the North East Regional Power Committee (NERPC) discussed various crucial issues pertaining to the power sector in the region. The meeting chaired by Arunachal Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein at Tawang on Wednesday discussed the challenges and opportunities for the development of the power sector in the northeastern states. Mein, who is the chairman of the NERPC, in his address, lauded the successful deliberation of the meeting towards resolving issues through the spirit of cooperation, leading to significant improvement of the power sector in the North Eastern Region. The deputy chief minister said the power sector holds immense importance as one of the core industries contributing to the Index of Industrial Production (IIP). "Power is not only a raw material for industries but also a basic necessity for the general public. Therefore, discussions on power sector issues in forums like NERPC are vital," he said. Mein ad

World Bank to provide $200 mn for power sector reforms in Himachal

The World Bank will provide USD 200 million (about Rs 1,600 crore loan) to finance the Himachal Power Sector Development Program to bring improvements in renewable energy integration in the state, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said on Wednesday. With the addition of state equity, the total outlay for the programme would be Rs 2,000 crore and the World Bank funding is expected to be available by August 2023 for a duration of five years up to 2028, he said in a statement issued here. He also informed that the World Bank Board has approved the programme on June 27, 2023, in Washington. Improvements in the utilisation of renewable energy, reliability of grid at transmission and distribution level and strengthening of the institutional capacities of the various power utilities/agencies of the state would be undertaken under the programme, he said. Efforts will be made towards the promotion of integrated resource planning of the power sector, piloting demand response management,

States offered Rs 1.4 trillion loans linked to power sector reforms

Govts unable to complete reform process in 2021-22 and 2022-23 may also benefit from additional borrowing

12 states to get Rs 66,413 crore in incentives for power sector reforms

The Ministry of Finance has granted permission to 12 state governments to raise financial resources of Rs 66,413 crore through borrowing permissions

Electricity prices to hike in Delhi: AAP, BJP indulge in blame game

Delhi Power Minister Atishi on Monday blamed the Centre's "mismanagement" for the hike in power purchase adjustment cost (PPAC), while the BJP claimed it was a result of "collusion" between the AAP government and power discoms. An "artificial shortage" was pushing up coal prices in the country. The Centre is forcing the power generation companies to buy at least 10 per cent of imported coal, which is 10 times costlier than domestic coal, Atishi charged. "Delhi's consumers are being forced to bear the brunt of the central government's coal crisis through a hike in the power purchasing adjustment charge. Its power generation company NTPC is selling electricity to Delhi at a massive 25-50 per cent hike over DERC (Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission) stipulated rates," she charged. "Why is the BJP-led central government forcing power companies to purchase 10 per cent of imported coal, which is 10 times more expensive? Is the BJP also colluding with coal importers," she asked. Domes

MoS Power urges industry to adopt advanced tech to become competitive

Union Minister Krishan Pal Gurjar on Monday urged the industry to adopt advanced technologies for their operations in order to compete at the global level. The Minister of State (MoS) for Power was speaking at the inauguration of 'Advance Industrial Technology Demonstration Centre' at National Power Training Institute (NPTI) at Badarpur here. "Advance technology is a must for the growth of the country. Today, if we have to compete with the world, we will have to adopt advanced technologies," Gurjar, who is also the MoS for Heavy Industries, said. Reduced consumption of energy will bring the production cost of various industries and help them to compete in the market, he said. NPTI Director General (DG) Tripta Thakur said industries like iron and steel, cement, pulp & paper, and textile together contribute around 30 per cent to the total commercial energy consumption in India. "The institute under the guidance of the Ministry of Power will educate on best practices and technologies

Power demand to grow in double digits, says Union Minister R K Singh

R K Singh says consumers will soon get more rights

Power sector transforms into surplus from deficit in nine years: R K Singh

India's power sector underwent a transformation phase to become "surplus" from a deficit in the last nine years, Union Minister R K Singh said on Thursday. More than 185 gigawatt (GW) of generation capacity has been added "transforming the country from a power deficit to a power surplus", the Power and New and Renewable Energy Minister said while addressing a conference on the achievements of his ministry here. The total installed power generation capacity currently is 416 GW. The installed capacity is now close to double the peak demand and India is exporting power to neighbouring countries, he said. The entire world has seen how India's power sector transformed in the last nine years, the minister said. The maximum demand till date has only been 221 GW, he said. For transmission of power, 1.97 lakh circuit kilometres (ckm) of transmission lines have been added connecting the whole country into one grid running on one frequency with the capability of transferring 1.12 lakh MW fro

Hindustan Power Exchange crosses 5 bn units trade in 11 months of launch

Hindustan Power Exchange (HPX) on Thursday announced that its has crossed the milestone of five Billion Units (BU) of power traded within 11 months of its launch. HPX was able to cross this landmark amid a rapid increase in trading volume across contingency and long duration contracts (LDC) segments, a HPX statement said. The strong growth in members/client base and trading volumes demonstrate the trust and support the platform has been able to garner from power sector participants, it stated. HPX is a new-age power exchange promoted by PTC India, BSE and ICICI Bank and has a diverse shareholder base represented by state power utilities, central generators, independent power producers, market makers in trading, and power sector consultants. HPX raced to five BUs within a span of 173 days with a daily average volume of around 18 MU, post-crossing the historic landmark of 1 BU, which happened within a time frame of 171 days. A large part of this volume is attributed to the LDCs whic

Delhi's peak power demand crosses 7000 MW, highest in this season

The scorching heat in the national capital pushed the peak power demand above 7000 MW on Tuesday for the first time this summer, discom officials said. The realtime data of State Load Dispatch Centre (SLDC) Delhi showed that the peak demand was 7098 MW around 3.29 pm. Power discoms -- BRPL (BSES Rajdhani Power Limited) and BYPL (BSES Yamuna Power Limited) -- "successfully" met the peak power demand -- 3103 MW and 1615 MW, respectively in their areas, said a BSES spokesperson. Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL) has successfully met the power demand of 2055 MW peak demand so far, said a company spokesperson. Delhi reeled under hot weather conditions on Monday with the maximum temperature settling at 41.2 degrees Celsius. The maximum temperature on Tuesday is also expected to remain around 41 degrees Celsius. This month, Delhi's peak power demand has seen huge variations. It has increased from 4390 MW on June 1 to Tuesday's 7098, an increase of 2708 MW or 61 per cent, the

Peak power demand met touches all-time high of 223.23 GW on June 9

Peak power demand met or the highest supply of electricity touched an all-time high of 223.23 GW on June 9, showing the waning impact of unseasonal rains on consumption, government data showed. The power ministry had estimated that the peak power demand will easily touch 229 GW during this summer in April only. The unseasonal rains affected the demand and brought down temperature during summer, resulting in fewer use of cooling appliances like air conditioners which guzzle electricity, experts say. Taking proactive measures, the power ministry had asked well in advance all imported coal-based power plants to run at full capacity from March 16, 2023 to June 15, 2023, to meet any unprecedented rise in demand and consumption of electricity in the country. Besides, the ministry had asked the domestic coal-based thermal power plants to import coal for blending to avoid any shortfall of the dry fuel. The government data shows that peak power demand met was 215.97GW in April and 221.34GW

Inox Wind bags 100 MW wind power project from ABEnergia Renewables

Shares of Inox Wind ended over 4 per cent higher at Rs 149.40 on the BSE

Govt launches initiative to leverage emerging technologies in power sector

The government has launched a 'Mission on Advanced and High-Impact Research (MAHIR)' with a view to leverage emerging technologies in the power sector and make the country a manufacturing hub. The 'Mission on Advanced and High-Impact Research (MAHIR)' aims to facilitate indigenous research, development and demonstration of the latest and emerging technologies in the power sector, a power ministry statement said. By identifying emerging technologies and taking them to the implementation stage, the mission seeks to leverage them as the main fuel for future economic growth and thus make India a manufacturing hub of the world, it stated. The Ministry of Power and the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy have jointly launched a national mission to quickly identify emerging technologies in the power sector and develop them indigenously, at scale, for deployment within and outside India. An office memorandum to this effect has been issued today, it stated. The mission will be funded by .

Directing regulation!

Recent issue of a direction by the Ministry of Power to the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission does not augur well for either regulatory autonomy or for the longer-term development of sector

Torrent Power board to consider plan to raise up to Rs 3,000 cr via NCDs

Torrent Power board will consider a proposal to raise up to Rs 3,000 crore through the issuance of non-convertible debentures on a private placement basis. A meeting of the Board of Directors is scheduled to be held on Monday, May 29, 2023, to consider and approve the raising of funds by issuance of non-convertible debentures up to Rs 3,000 crore through private placement basis, a BSE filing showed. The board will also consider and approve audited standalone and consolidated financial results for the quarter and year ended March 31, 2023, and recommendation of final dividend, if any, on the equity shares of the company for FY 2022-23.

Peak power demand hits historic high of 220 Gw, may cross that level soon

Figure is in sync with power ministry's estimate that demand would top 220 Gw in Apr-June quarter

Power minister asks industry to set targets under Green Open Access Rules

Union New and Renewable Energy Minister R K Singh on Saturday directed the industry to set targets under Green Open Access Rules 2022. In June 2023, the government notified the Green Open Access Rules 2022 to further accelerate India's renewable energy programmes. These rules were notified for promoting generation, purchase and consumption of green energy including through waste-to-energy plants. It also enables a simplified procedure for the open access to green power. Singh chaired a meeting with Industry and other stakeholders in New Delhi on Green Energy Open Access Rules, an official statement said. "The minister exhorts industry leaders to set targets for going green. He called upon the industry leaders to set targets for going green and take advantage of the provisions of Green Energy Open Access Rules to get green power at reasonable rates," the ministry of power said. The Green Energy Open Access Rules 2022, Singh said, are a major step towards India cutting emissions by

Torrent Power incorporates two wholly-owned subsidiaries TU9, TU13

Torrent Power on Thursday said it has incorporated two wholly-owned subsidiaries -- Torrent Urja 9 Pvt Ltd (TU9) and Torrent Urja 13 Pvt Ltd (TU13) -- for carrying out business in the power sector including renewables. "Company has incorporated a WOS (wholly owned subsidiary) namely 'Torrent Urja 9 Private Limited' (TU9) on April 26, 2023," a BSE filing said. TU9 is incorporated in India and registered with the Registrar of Companies, Gujarat at Ahmedabad on April 26, 2023 and is yet commence its business operations. It stated that the TU9 is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company. TU9 is incorporated with an objective to carry on the business of generation, transmission, distribution, purchase, procurement, sale, trading, import, export or otherwise deal in all forms of electrical power and energy including non-conventional and renewable sources of energy. TU9 has 10,000 equity shares of Rs 10 each with paid up share capital of Rs 1,00,000. Another BSE filing stated that the .

TMS Ep 419: Telco wars, brand Sachin, power stocks, SpaceX's Starship

Why are telcos pointing fingers at each other? Did Brand Sachin enable Brand Dhoni and Kohli? Will heat waves spark a rally in power stocks? What is SpaceX's Starship space vehicle? Answers here

Power demand in India shrinks in March thanks to unexpected rains: CRISIL

The fall in demand also led to a fall in power generation by 7 per cent YoY in March as compared to the same month last year