Electricity demand in Uttar Pradesh is reaching record heights due to soaring temperatures in July. Last Friday, the state witnessed a record-breaking demand of 27,622 megawatts of electricity, surpassing the previous record of 27,611 megawatts set on June 13th earlier this year. Most parts of UP have been experiencing dry weather for the last week, leading to a rise in temperature.
UPPCL revised its roster
Struggling to cope with the high demand, the UP Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL) has revised its roster, curtailing supply to villages and small towns, including the Bundelkhand region. According to the corporation's load dispatch register, villages are now receiving over one hour less electricity supply than before, and the same situation applies to smaller towns. However, in addition to the official supply roster, most cities and villages in UP are facing frequent power cuts. Even the state capital, Lucknow, is experiencing hours-long power outages. Corporation officials cited local faults and transformer issues as the reasons for these unplanned outages, which have sometimes exceeded the scheduled reductions.
The increasing demand has necessitated importing 14,251 megawatts of electricity. Presently, the state is receiving 3,812 megawatts of power from various states under banking arrangements, and 4,069 megawatts from the thermal power plants owned by the UP State Power Generation Corporation. However, there is a production capacity shortage of 1,730 megawatts from four units of the state's power generation company, with units in Lalitpur, Anpara, and Bara facing issues. Efforts are underway to restore them by August 5th.
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High demand for electricity will continue for the next two months
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Corporation, M. Devraj, asserted that despite the surge in demand, the power supply is being managed efficiently. He further predicted that the high demand for electricity will continue for the next two months. To meet this increased demand, the Power Corporation plans to purchase additional electricity from the energy exchange. He stated that compared to the previous year, the demand has risen by an average of 20 percent this year.
