CEA pegged energy and peak power surplus at 4.6 pct and 2.5 pct

The contribution from coal/ lignite based generating stations to the generation programme is 1,044.29 BU.

The Central Electricity Authority (CEA) has pegged energy and peak power surplus at 4.6 percent and 2.5 percent, respectively, this fiscal, indicating that India will be a power surplus country in 2018-19.

Last year, the CEA in its load generation balancing report (LGBR) had also projected that India would become a power surplus nation in 2017-18. But the peak power deficit was 2.1 percent while overall electricity deficit was 0.7 percent across the country in 2017-18.

In April-June quarter this fiscal, peak power deficit was 0.7 percent while overall electricity deficit stood at 0.6 percent.

"All India power supply position indicates that the country is likely to have a peak surplus of 2.5 percent and energy surplus of 4.6 percent," stated the CEA's LGBR for 2018-19.

A power sector expert said, "India is a power surplus state because its installed generation capacity is around 344 GW against the peak demand of not more than 170 GW so far. The deficit in supply is primarily because of discoms' reluctance to buy power. Either they don't have funds to buy power or they are afraid of under-recovery of power bills."

The other reason for power deficit is a limitation of transmission and distribution networks particularly in remote and hilly areas, the expert opined.

According to the report, surplus energy is anticipated of the order of 1.9 percent, 14.8 percent and 22.9 percent in the western, northern and north-eastern regions, respectively.

However, it said that eastern and southern regions are likely to face an energy shortage of 4.2 percent and 0.7 percent respectively which can be met from surplus power in other regions.

The peak surplus of 9.3 percent, 4.9 percent, and 12.6 percent is anticipated in western, eastern and north-eastern regions respectively. Northern, and southern regions are likely to face peak deficit of the order of 1.2 percent and 4.5 percent respectively.

The anticipated availability of 1,398.7 billion units (BU) energy during 2018-19 is based on the generation programme of 1,265 BU in respect of conventional generation sources, it said.

The generation programme from fossil fuel based generating sources has been arrived at after ensuring full utilization of the energy that is likely to be available from nuclear & renewable energy sources, it said.

The contribution from coal/ lignite based generating stations to the generation programme is 1,044.29 BU.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)