Tamil Nadu to buy 1,500 MW of additional electricity to avert power cuts: Minister

Chennai, Oct 13 (IANS) Tamil Nadu will purchase an additional 1,500 MW of electricity during evening peak hours from October 15 to 31 to avert power cuts amid a sharp increase in demand, Electricity and Law Minister R. Nirmal Kumar said on Tuesday. 

Defending the proposed procurement, he said supply would be purchased between 6 p.m. and midnight, when solar generation is unavailable. Although bids had been invited for up to 3,500 MW, purchases would be restricted to 1,500 MW, depending on prices and requirements.

The minister estimated the additional expenditure at around Rs 5 crore daily. Gas-based electricity was available at approximately Rs 35 per unit, while naphtha-based supply costing about Rs 47 per unit would be excluded, he said.

Nirmal Kumar said peak demand had climbed from 16,800 MW during the corresponding period last year to around 21,700 MW, a rise of nearly 30%.

He attributed the increase to persistent heat linked to El Nino and said national demand forecasts had underestimated the requirement. The state faced a supply shortfall of approximately 4,850 MW, including 1,850 MW unavailable from central allocations. Wind generation had dropped to about 500 MW against arrangements covering 3,500 MW. Tamil Nadu had secured 430 MW of thermal power from Assam and explored purchases from other states, but cheaper supplies were insufficient, he said.

Without additional procurement, consumers would have faced power cuts lasting two to three hours. To reduce dependence on short-term purchases, the government would invite tenders this month for long-term procurement of at least 3,500 MW. A separate five-year arrangement for 1,500 MW to 2,000 MW was being prepared, with additional supplies of 6,000 MW to 8,000 MW targeted by 2028-29.

Accusing the previous DMK administration of failing to sign long-term agreements, he denied that the TVK government had cancelled existing contracts. The government was also preparing a revival plan for the stalled Uppur thermal project and reviewing renewable energy procurement to incorporate battery storage, improve transparency and obtain real-time generation data. Thermal generation had increased to around 4,200 MW to 4,300 MW, he said.

Addressing Monday’s interruption at the Secretariat, Nirmal Kumar said an overheated electrical board on one floor had been repaired within about 15 minutes. He denied a building-wide outage and said hospitals and other critical facilities had backup feeders to maintain uninterrupted supply.

--IANS

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