Peak power demand breaches previous high as heatwave keeps India sweltering

A heatwave has gripped several parts of the country pushing the power demand to a new high.

The ongoing heatwave across large swathes of India has pushed the country's electricity demand to a new high of 215,882 MW (215.88 GW).

To be sure, this was the peak demand met by the power utilities nationally. The deficit or the power demand that could not be met was to the tune of 2,021 MW on April 18. This means the actual demand on that day was 217,902 MW (217.9 GW), a record high yet again.

The previous highest peak demand that was met was 211,856 MW (211.85 GW) on June 10, 2022. The general peak demand was 215 GW, the date of which has not been released by the ministry of power.

Heatwave conditions have persisted across India including Delhi, Bihar and West Bengal. The threshold for a heatwave is met when the maximum temperature of a station reaches at least 40 degrees Celsius in the plains, at least 37 degrees Celsius in coastal areas, and at least 30 degrees Celsius in hilly regions, and the departure from normal is at least 4.5 degrees Celsius.

Also read: Will India face another power crisis this summer?

Mumbai on April 19 reeled under a heatwave-like condition that saw the daytime temperature shoot up to five degrees above normal.

Delhi recorded a maximum temperature of 38.2°C on April 19, which was a degree above normal. The maximum was 40.4°C on April 18. Prior to April 19, Delhi had also seen four consecutive days where the mercury was above the 40-degree mark.

The peak demand met on April 19 was 214,924 MW and that on April 17 was 210,829 MW. The government is expecting the peak power demand to cross 230 MW this summer.

When asked if the government is prepared to meet the surge in power demand and whether there would be power cuts this summer, Union power minister in an interview with Moneycontrol said: "We are prepared... Electricity demand is increasing rapidly, at about 10.5 percent in our country, if we look at last year. The great thing is that this shows our economy is growing. We have enough capacity; we will absolutely meet the surge in demand."

"We have made sure that there are sufficient stocks of coal, and we've also tied up the gas capacities to supplement the coal and renewable energy capacities. I have issued directions that all imported coal-based power plants will operate to their full capacity. So, we are well prepared. There is not going to be any issue during peak time," the minister told Moneycontrol.

The government is eyeing a total of 9,000 megawatt (MW) of electricity from gas-based power plants and another 2,920 MW from brand-new thermal power plants to meet the surge in power demand this summer, the power ministry said on March 9.

As for the current coal stocks, data accessed by Moneycontrol showed that the situation as of now is manageable. Of the 165 domestic coal-based thermal power plants in the country, 30 had critical stocks. Last year around this time, the number of such plants had touched 90-96. Coal stock is said to be at a critical level when power plants have less than 25 percent of the normative 26 days of coal stock with them.