Peak power demand falls as cooling needs ease

New Delhi: India's peak power demand has eased to around 234 GW after remaining above 250 GW for much of the first half of October, as cooling and irrigation requirements begin to decline with the onset of cooler weather and rainfall in many parts of the country.

The fall comes after an unusually strong power demand in September and October, when consumption remained elevated amid below-normal monsoon rainfall. Peak demand touched 260 GW on October 5, the highest ever recorded for the month, and remained close to summer levels until October 15. This demand had reached 250 GW on October 15, with only a few days in the first half of the month seeing levels below 240 GW.

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A government official had told ET earlier this month that electricity demand was expected to decline as the pressure on cooling appliances and irrigation reduced. However, states such as Gujarat and Tamil Nadu continue to see high peak demand. In Gujarat, the peak demand on October 24 was around 28.3 GW, which is almost the same as in much of June. "This could be because of the weather-related demand and some industrial demand moving to the grid," an industry official said.

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September had recorded an increase of around 11% in electricity consumption. The sustained demand had also kept electricity prices elevated in the short-term market. Prices in the day-ahead market of the Indian Energy Exchange were hovering above ₹7 per unit during the first half of October. Coal stocks at domestic coal-based power plants stood at 17.3 million tonnes as of October 24, compared with 17.9 million tonnes on October 15 and 18.5 million tonnes at the b ginning of the month.