J&K gets 792 MW more power this winter

Sahil Rasgotra. Updated: 11/17/2017 1:05:52 PM Front Page

JAMMU: With the unwanted tag of worst performer in balancing the power demand and supply already attached to it, Jammu and Kashmir has got a major respite to wade through the chilly winter courtesy the centre government giving additional power to state, no lesser than 74% of the reserved northern region pool.
The announcement in this regard was made by the Union power ministry on Thursday, asserting that additional electricity is allocated to the State to meet high demand during the winter season.
"In view of increase in the power requirement in Jammu and Kashmir that happens normally during winter, the central government has allocated 792 MW out of 1071 MW from the unallocated power pool of northern region," the ministry said in a statement.
If the state requires more power, the Government of India will consider allocating additional power to the state, it said.
The allocation of whopping 74 per cent power from the reserved pool is poised to help the state-already facing acute shortage- in further meeting the additional requirement of power during the winter.
It is worthwhile mentioning here that the power requirement in the state is met from generation from its own power plants- 23 plants with cumulative capacity of 1220.96 MW, allocated share from central generating stations-7 such stations allocating total power of 2397 MW, and power purchased from market.
At present, around 70 per cent of the energy requirement is being met from central generating stations in the state.
However, the power shortage in state still stands at a whopping 20%, 22 times more than the all-India average of 0.9%, as revealed in the union power ministry's recent report on power supply positions in the country for the period from April 2017 to October 2017.
The peak demand of state during the current year (April to October, 2017) was 2,768 MW and the demand met was 2,214 MW, thus, leaving a shortfall of around 554 MW (i.e 20 per cent).
The grappling with peak deficit of Jammu and Kashmir has been a long affair, as the state has consistently performed poorer than the national average.
However, there is a small but gradual reduction in deficit over the years. From 28% deficit in Financial Year 2012-13 to 23% in Financial Year 2014-15, the gap had came down to the 20% mark in past financial year that ended on 31st March, 2017, however, remaining far away from the national average of 0.9%.
The daily power supply position reports, recently released by the Northern Regional Load Dispatch Centre (NRLDC) show that the state experiences the demand-supply gap both during peak and off-peak hours.
It is also worthwhile to mention that the energy demand of Jammu and Kashmir has gradually increased over the last five years at an annual rate of about 5% to 6%.
While, a sustainable solution in eliminating this power deficit is not to be seen in immediate future, at-least the winters would be a lot less harsher, atleast for this year.


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