Events & Issues

New Delhi, 30 July 2012

Crippling Power Crisis

‘PAPER’ PROJECTS, HAEMORRHAGE CASH

By Dhurjati Mukherjee

In the wee hours of Monday morning, the Northern Grid collapsed resulting in a sleepless night for people in nine States: Union Capital Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, UP, Uttarakhand, J&K and Chandigarh. Add to this, services of 300 trains, including Rajdhani, Shatabadi and Duronto were severely affected causing inconvenience to passengers. Notwithstanding, Union Power Minister Sushil Shinde pinning blame on recalcitrant States for overdrawing electricity.

Importantly, this is not the first or last time various parts of the country huge a power crisis. Thanks, to a number of new projects, grandiosely announced to generate 54,000 MW during the 11^th Plan (2007-12) continue to remain on paper. The reason is not far to seek: acute shortage of coal and gas. Thereby, threatening to derail upcoming projects, spooking private developers and investors.

The facts speak for themselves. In Haryana, the 1500 MW Indira Gandhi Super Thermal Power Project set up by the country’s largest generator NTPC, in partnership with Haryana and Delhi, is generating way below capacity as there is no coal. Ditto the case in UP and Kerala where NTPC along with private operators are languishing for want of fuel. In fact, NTPC is barely able to operate 26,000 MW of its installed capacity of 32,000 MW due to continuous fuel shortages.

Pertinently, UP, the largest State alone needs between 12,000-13,000 MW of power every day if it has to ensure unrestricted supply. Despite power cuts, the State still requires about 10,000-11,000 MW.  But the average power availability from all sources is about 10,400 MW. Punjab’s peak demand is around 9500 MW and when restricted over 8500 MW.

More scandalous is the situation in the North East which is reeling under a serious power crisis. Even Assam, presently with an installed capacity of about 376 MW is able to generate only 280 MW while its demand is more than 1200 MW. In fact, the region’s backwardness can be attributed directly to poor power supply and generation.  

This is not all. Distribution of power is another problem faced by States. Whereby, this area is haemorrhaging cash thus widening the demand-supply gap. Made larger by a flagging reforms agenda and missed generation capacity through additional targets.

True, Delhi and Punjab are in a position to buy power as both have hiked the electricity rates. But UP, West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh which continue to drag their feet on increasing consumer tariffs are simply not able to buy power from other States to plug its deficits. Preferring, instead, to switch off electricity to minimise their losses.   

Notably, due to widespread power shortages, specially in the Northern States, the spot power price in the day-ahead market on the two power exchanges was hovering around Rs 3 per unit last month. While, six States have declared power holidays another eight have load-shedding plans lined up.

Obviously, industrial consumers have been the hardest hid and are forced to rely almost entirely on their captive units to generate electricity at over Rs 10 per unit. Adding to depressed balance sheets, the cost of power through generators is double the price of power of most States. Even then sales of generators are growing at over 25 per cent per annum.

But States are caught in a cleft stick. They need the generators but are aware that leads to serious health implications. A recent WHO report has certified diesel fumes as a definite carcinogen, causing toxicity.  Frighteningly, it can cause cancer, specially lung cancer. Further, according to another Bangalore-based study by TERI, found diesel generators to be the largest source of toxic gases including nitrogen dioxide emissions after vehicles. 

Besides, increasing pollution levels, the use of gensets has not only increased production costs of small units, eroded their profitability but also affected the economy as a whole.  Given that power generation in the coming days is not expected to be much better, unless definite measures are not put in place urgently.

Worse, most of the hydro-electric projects have come to a standstill due to the agitation of a religious community and environmentalists. Shamefully, projects like Uttarakhand’s Srinagar (330 MW) where 80 per cent work is complete has been stalled.

Other projects in the doldrums are Pala Maneri (480 MW), Bhaironghat (381 MW) and the Centre-owned Loharinag Pala (600 MW). All were scheduled to produce power this year.  The 2000 MW hydro-power station in Subanisiri along the Assam-Arunachal border too is languishing at the behest of the ‘green brigade’ and extremists.

Needless to say, a concerned Prime Minister set-up a high power inter-Ministerial Committee recently to examine the status of hydro-projects along the Ganga and suggest how the existing power projects should be altered to achieve the required flow of water. This panel includes Planning Commission’s BK Chaturvedi, Centre for Science & Environment Dr. Sunita Narain, ex-IIT Roorkee’s Rajendra Singh, and representatives of various Ministries.

Undeniably, faced with this crippling power situation, our policy-makers need to address this post-haste. Our leaders need to ensure that on-going hydro projects are not obstructed and take strong measures to resist any protests. It also needs to increase efficiency in the thermal sector and encourage gas bearing plants. While Tripura’s Palatana 750MW project is expected to generate power within a month, New Delhi needs to explore avenues of joint collaboration with Bangladesh. 

In sum, we need to realise that power is a dire necessity for social and economic development of the country. And, as such, both conventional and non-conventional sources of power would have to be exploited to meet the people and industrial needs. We also need to electrify villages if the livelihood standards of the aam aadmi are to be upgraded and their earnings boosted.  ----- INFA

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