On Wednesday, peak electricity consumption in the country surpassed the previous all-time high of 1,97,060 megawatts (MW) set just a day before. The maximum demand level was reached around 12:01 a.m., according to Union Power Minister RK Singh.
Peak demand refers to the maximum level of electricity consumption at any given time. According to IIT-Energy Kanpur’s Analytics Lab, when the market was at its height, thermal power plants met 67 percent of the load, while renewable power sources supplied 16 percent. Another 14% came from hydropower plants, and the rest came from gas and nuclear power facilities.
On Tuesday, solar and wind power accounted for 7.5 percent of the country’s total electricity supply of 4,470 million units (MUs). Because demand peaked at a reasonable period for solar units, the renewable proportion was more significant. Higher power consumption heralds a resurgence in commercial and industrial activity, with firms progressively restarting operations following the recent removal of lockdown restrictions. Domestic consumption has also developed due to the growing usage of cooling equipment as temperatures have risen.
The increase in demand is excellent news for power producers, as thermal power plants only worked at 54% capacity in May due to decreased demand.
“At 11:43 a.m. today, peak demand in India reached an all-time high of 197060 megawatts. In a tweet on Tuesday, electricity and new renewable energy minister Raj Kumar Singh stated, “Looking forward to demanding reaching 200000 MW shortly.”
The country’s installed power generating capacity of 3,83,373 MW is over double that of peak demand, suggesting that most power plants operate at low plant load factors (PLF). In May 2020, the PLF of thermal power plants decreased to 48%. In May, electricity usage rose 6.6 percent year over year to 108.8 billion units, although it was still lower than the 120 BU consumed in May 2019 when the coronavirus was not present.
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By Reporter.
