Mumbai, Nov. 2 -- Kerala is set to face another round of power load-shedding from November 1, after the state government delayed approval for extending a short-term power purchase agreement with the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board. The disruption would be the third since the United Democratic Front government assumed office.
Officials of the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) said the state could face a peak-hour power shortage of up to 900 MW, forcing the utility to impose multiple restrictions between 6 pm and midnight. The expected shortage follows two rounds of power cuts in July and September, while peak-hour consumption has remained around 4,900 MW for the past two weeks.
Demand could cross 5,500 MW if Kerala experiences a dry spell, whereas the maximum capacity available to the state from November 1 will be 4,200 MW. The KSEB had proposed purchasing 2,225 MW, but the Electricity Regulatory Commission approved only 1,000 MW at prices ranging from Rs. 6.90 to Rs. 10 per unit.
The Himachal board had offered between 900 MW and 1,200 MW during peak hours at Rs. 14.50 per unit. Kerala began receiving the electricity on October 1, helping the KSEB end the previous round of power cuts, but the government file seeking approval for continued purchases from November 1 to May 15 remained pending for 22 days.
KSEB officials said repeated requests to the authorities had not resulted in approval. They added that Rajasthan had approached the Himachal board with an offer of Rs. 15.50 per unit and secured the arrangement, leading to the expected discontinuation of supply to Kerala. The officials said Himachal could have reduced its rate to Rs. 12.50 per unit if Kerala had negotiated earlier, and warned that the withdrawal would leave the state facing a severe power shortage amid high demand across the central grid.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Construction World.