NTPC gets ready to meet rising power demand

New Delhi: State-run power giant NTPC on Monday said that it has geared up to meet rising power demand and recordedelectricity generation growth of 23 percent over the previous year. The country is witnessing a sharp increase in power demand, and NTPC is making all efforts for meeting demand as per the grid requirement, it said in a statement.

NTPC has geared up to meet the increasing demand, and the generation from NTPC group stations have registered a 23 per cent growth compared to the previous year, it stated.

Under flexible utilisation of coal policy, NTPC is arranging coal at the stations where the stock position is critical. The company also said that it is continuously coordinating with Coal India and Railways for augmenting coal supply at critical stations and diverting rakes wherever required. It is also augmenting 2.7 Lakh MT import coal left out from the contracts placed earlier. Darlipalli Unit 2 (800 MW) was put in operation, and commercial operation of the unit is being done with effect from September 1, 2021.

The plant is a pit-head station, and coal is being fed from the captive mine of NTPC (Dulanga), it said. It is increasing coal production from all captive mines of NTPC, it added. During peak hours, approximately 7 GW of gas capacity is on the bar against 3 GW last week. It was observed that the States are not scheduling from gas stations, but are drawing from the grid. Further, for meeting the peak requirement, Power System Operation Corporation (POSOCO) is scheduling the gas stations under Reserves Regulation Ancillary Services (RRAS).

To have adequate planning by the generators and ensure adequate arrangement for gas, it is advised that the States may schedule power at least for a week. RRAS is to restore the frequency level at the desired level and to relieve the congestion in the transmission network. RRAS will support regulation-up and regulation-down service.

Meanwhile, in a separate statement, the power ministry said NTPC is committed to improving the power supply in Bihar. NTPC has been supplying power to Bihar as per the schedule provided by various stations of NTPC and its JVs (Joint Ventures), the ministry said. During the fortnight from August 14, 2021, to August 28, 2021, on average, NTPC has supplied around 73 MU (million units) power on daily basis to Bihar, which constitutes around 62 per cent of the total consumption of Bihar during the same period. The peak demand months for the FY 2021-22, as declared by the Eastern Region Power Committee at the beginning of the year, were April, May and June.