Maharashtra revives load shedding after October 2012 amid rising mismatch between power demand and supply & short supply of coal

Currently, 1,375 mw of load is shed except in Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Pune & it is expected to increase to 3,000 mw

Load shedding is presently up to 3 hours but may rise up to 8 hours if the situation worsens

Energy Minister Nitin Raut urges consumers to curtail power use during 6 am and 10 am and 6 pm and 10 pm

Maharashtra is in the midst of a major power crisis, as load shedding or blackouts – last seen in October 2012 – are back amid the rising mismatch between the demand and supply of power and also due to coal being in short supply. The state-run power distribution company, MahaVitaran, has launched load shedding of 1,375MW, for up to three hours in almost all districts excluding Mumbai, Thane, Mulund, Bhandup, Navi Mumbai and Pune. However, the various stakeholders, including consumer bodies, are claiming the load shedding being carried out is 3,000MW and in some areas, it is in excess of three hours. The MahaVitaran has warned that it may increase up to 3,000MW if the demand, which has grown by 8.2 per cent, rises further.

Energy Minister Nitin Raut has hinted that the situation will become grim unless the Centre provides adequate coal to the power-generating units of the MahaGenco. At present, the coal stock with MahaGenco’s power generation units, with a total generation capacity of 9,330MW, can last from 0.90 days to 7.21 days. The Centre needs to allow the state to import coal to tide over the situation. “Consumers are urged to curtail use of power, especially during the morning peak hours from 6am to 10am and evening peak hours, from 6pm to 10pm,” he said.

Raut said that the demand for power has shot up because of summer and also because of festivals, including Dr B R Ambedkar’s birth anniversary celebrations and Ramzan. “Apart from the shortage in coal supply, there are constraints in the availability of railway rakes, which is impacting the power generation,” he added. The power deficit is of the order of 2,500MW to 3,000MW. The state’s demand has increased to 28,850MW and this is expected to soon surge to 30,000MW.

The minister claimed that load shedding in urban areas including Mumbai and Pune is less compared to that in rural areas and also areas with high distribution and commercial losses. The MahaVitaran has already started receiving 415MW of the total 760MW from Coastal Gujarat Power Limited, while another 673MW is from the NTPC.

The move has evoked an angry response from the BJP. The leader of the opposition in the state assembly, Devendra Fadnavis, slammed the Maha Vikas Aghadi government for the present power crisis. He claimed that the state had come back to square one, as it was being forced to carry out load shedding. He said the people were facing severe hardships because of ‘no governance’.

Published on: Tuesday, April 12, 2022, 11:17 PM IST