Hyderabad: With no chances of further improving its existing generation capacities or purchasing power from outside, Telangana state is looking at heightened power cuts for an indefinite period. The latest energy balance sheet prepared by Telangana Genco portrays a grim picture of the precarious power situation in the state. However, officials are hopeful that after the kharif operations comes to a close in another 15 days, the power supply situation may improve due to lowered demands from the agriculture sector. However, that is also not a hundred per cent certainty as farmers will be ready by then to raise crops using ground water for the rabi season due to the delayed monsoon this year.
The demand for power on Thursday touched 160 Million Units against an availability of only 127 MU, leaving a huge gap of 33 MU, which has forced officials to impose power cuts across the state.
Though the AP Reorganisation Act provides a major share for Telangana in distribution of energy, due to absence of Independent Power Projects, limitations on po-wer purchases from outside beyond 20 MU and abrupt stoppage of hydel generation due to reduction in inflows into Srisailam and Nagarjunasagar have led to the present situation.
Telangana is presently receiving 43 MU from thermal, 10 MU from hydel, 37 MU from Central Generating Stations (towards share), 17 MU from Independent Power Projects and 20 MU from power purchases from outside, all amounting to 127 MU against the demand of 160 MU. The Power Grid Corporation Ltd has started laying another double circuit north south corridor to enable power-starved states to purchase electricity from power surplus states. But this will take at least two years. Due to this limitation, the existing 20 MU power purchase will have to continue.
Telangana Genco, however, has performed well after its recent formation by improving generation at all its pithead thermal stations by 44 per cent during June, July and August. Added to the woes, the 240 MW Hydel generation at Lower Jurala is affected due to submergence of the entire unit recently in flood waters and officials estimates revival of generation in phased manner only between March to Septem-ber 2015, which eventually depend on next year’s inflows into Jurala.
The Kakatiya stage-2 project will be ready by August 2015 but it will be possible only if the government is able to find fresh coal linkages. Similarly the 120 MW Pulichintala Hydro power project will be synchronised between March-December 2015, which again is subjected to inflows next year. Plans are afoot for construction of various projects with an installed capacity of 6,680 MW for which no time frame has been given as of now.
Meanwhile SC’s decision deepens crisis
Adding another blow to the already power starved sufferings of Telangana state, the cancellation of Tadicherla-1 coal block amon-gst others by the Supreme Court has hit the coal linkage of Kakatiya Thermal Station stage-2 project which was pegged to go into power generation by August 2015. “The Kakatiya stage-2 project has been tagged to coal linkage exclusively from the Tadicherla block, but with Supreme Court cancelling 214 coal blocks across the country, we may have to find other alternatives,” said Telangana Genco officials.
Work on the 600MW thermal station is in full swing and Telangana Genco officials are confident of completing it by August 2015. “The Telangana government can either move the Supreme Court by filing an appeal or request the Centre to allot fresh coal linkage to the project from some other source,” said an official, adding that Telangana government needs to look for alternatives immediately and get the coal linkage so that Kakatiya stage-2 project progresses without any hindrance.
The two coal blocks cancelled by the Su-preme Court include the AP Mineral Development Corporation-Odisha Mineral Development Corporation joint venture project in Nawgan Talishaki in Odisha, and another by APMDC at Sulairi Belwar in Madhya Pradesh. “These two blocks were acquired by APMDC for commercial operations and not exclusively meant for power project purposes, hence it will not affect our power projects since there was no coal linkage from these two blocks,” said an official.
