Chandigarh: Due to acute shortage of coal supply, Punjab will witness up to three hour of daily power cuts till October 13.
The shortage of coal has forced the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) to reduce its power generation and impose load shedding in places across the state.
Chairman and managing director of the state-owned utility A Venuprasad said on Sunday thermal power plants in Punjab were operating at less than 50 per cent of their generation capacity as the state had only received 11 rakes of coal against its requirement of 22.
Reviewing the Power situation amid shortage of coal supply in the state, the Chief Minister said that all the thermal plants are unable to generate full capacity of power due to insufficient coal receipt. However, he reiterated his govt’s firm commitment to give power supply for irrigation of paddy crop where necessary at the fag end of crop yield. He said that power cuts on domestic consumers in cities and villages are being imposed to ensure sufficient supply to the agriculture sector as well as to maintain grid discipline.
Earlier, Prasad said that the thermal plants throughout the country are reeling under coal shortages and coal supplies crisis. Within state, Independent Power Producer (IPP) plants are left with less than two days coal i.e. NPL (1.9 days), TSPL (1.3 days), GVK (0.6) days and it is on a decreasing trend as coal supply by Coal India Ltd. (a GOI undertaking) is not as per requirements. PSPCL plants i.e. GGSSTP and GHTP also have just two days of coal stock reduction. Coal to all these plants is supplied by various coal India subsidiaries as per Fuel Supply Agreements of these plants with them but presently receipt is much below required level.