Shortfall in rain fails to spike power use in Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram: The state is passing through an anomalous phase in terms of power consumption. The monsoon is relatively weak this year but this, instead of pushing up consumption, has brought it down when compared to previous years.

Up till now, the southwest monsoon has been deficient by nearly 50 per cent, considerably lower than last June. However, consumption has shown a marginal decrease.

If last year, the average daily consumption during the first 15 days of the monsoon was 54 million units, this year it is 53 MU. “When one factors in the 20 per cent increase in the number of consumers, the reduction in consumption almost feels dramatic,” a top KSEB Limited official said.

The reason for this is a general fall in temperatures this monsoon. “Though there has been fall in rainfall, temperatures have not risen. Some days it has even fallen,” a Meteorological Department official said.

“In major towns and cities where consumption is generally higher like Ernakulam, Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram, daily peak temperatures have fallen by one to two degree Celsius,” the official said.

Lower consumption has allowed KSEBL to keep its hydel generation within the 10-12 MU limit and also restrict its costly purchases from naphtha and diesel stations to below 0.4 MU.

Compared to last year, costly purchases from naphtha and diesel plants are virtually zero. If last year KSEBL lifted 12.68 MU daily from stations like NTPC Kayamkulam and Brahmapuram Diesel Plant at an average of Rs 11 per unit, this time the purchase is limited to a negligible 0.22 MU. But with crude oil prices moderating, even this minor purchase is made at a far lesser cost per unit.