State braces for record summer power demand
Vijayawada: Special chief secretary to the chief minister and energy department special chief secretary K Vijayanand said that with the onset of summer and the state’s power demand expected to increase significantly in the coming months. He has directed the state power utilities to gear up to ensure uninterrupted and reliable power supply across the State.
Vijayanand conducted a virtual review meeting on Monday with officials of the power utilities to assess power procurement plans, demand forecasts and generation availability. The meeting reviewed actual demand for February, projections for March, and planning for April.
During the meeting, Vijayanand said that the state’s daily power demand is expected to reach around 280 Million Units (MU) in May. He instructed discoms to closely monitor demand trends, maximise available generation and make advance arrangements for power procurement to ensure 24x7 quality power supply to all consumers.
He noted that AP has been meeting an average grid demand of 264.65 MU per day so far, registering a 9.15 per cent growth compared to the same period last year. The State grid has also recorded the highest ever energy consumption since bifurcation, touching 274.6 MU on March 7 this year along with a peak demand of 14,011 MW, he said.
Vijayanand observed that there was a sudden surge in electricity demand during the last ten days of February, which required additional power procurement from electricity exchanges to maintain uninterrupted supply.
Reviewing demand projections for the coming months, he said that peak demand during March and April is expected to reach around 14,500 MW, while minimum demand may hover around 9,000 MW. Minor deficits of 200–400 MW during early morning hours are anticipated, and utilities have been advised to plan power procurement in advance to bridge the gap.
The Special Chief Secretary emphasised the need for continuous monitoring of generation availability from thermal and renewable sources, and efficient procurement of power through exchanges such as the Day-Ahead Market (DAM) and Real-Time Market (RTM) to ensure uninterrupted power supply throughout the State.
Officials including director (Grid) A K V Bhaskar, APSPDCL CMD L Siva Sankar, APEPDCL CMD I Prudhvi Tej, APGenco managing director and APCPDCL CMD P Pulla Reddy, and representatives of APPCC participated in the review meeting.
