Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, April 7: For the second year in a row, India is experiencing a coal supply shortage, with Coal India Ltd. restricting deliveries to industrial customers in order to prioritise power plants. According to an internal document reviewed by Bloomberg, the state-owned miner limited daily deliveries to non-power sector users to 275,000 tonnes. This is around 17% lower than recent daily average volumes.
Coal inventories at power plants decreased to roughly 25.2 million tonnes on Sunday, falling short of the coal ministry’s aim of 45 million tonnes. Coal-fired power plants supply more than half of all electricity in India, according to data from January 31.
With heatwaves already sweeping broad swaths of India, demand for electricity is likely to skyrocket, putting additional strain on power plants. This year’s estimated demand, according to Union Power Secretary Alok Kumar, is 215,000 megawatts, up from last year’s top of 200,570 megawatts. Worse, gasoline stockpiles have already fallen short of expectations.
According to a Reuters review of statistics, electricity shortages in March were at their greatest level since the coal crisis in October last year.
When a crippling coal shortfall produced the biggest electricity deficit in nearly five years in October, several northern states experienced hours-long disruptions.
According to Reuters, Jharkhand and Uttarakhand reported deficiencies last month, and Gujarat ordered the shutdown of ‘non-continuous process’ factories in stages.
According to data, the deficits in Andhra Pradesh and Goa were several times bigger in March than they were in October. Even as rising temperatures drive up demand, coal supplies at state-run utility units in Maharashtra have plummeted due to supply difficulties.
Punjab has stated its concerns, citing the necessity for electricity supply during rice season (estimated demand is above 15,000 megawatts). At this point, it has also requested an additional 20 lakh metric tonnes of coal.
The national capital Delhi, which forecasts a record 8,000 megawatt demand this summer, is rethinking solar power generation and hoping that private households can help. Last month, the central government asked state-run power plants to maintain appropriate coal inventories and assist by discharging railway rakes as soon as possible, allowing them to reload and supply neighbouring states. Now, 4,000 tonnes of coal may be carried by a single rake.
