Pooja holidays, rain bring Power demand in Tamil Nadu down to 303 MU

CHENNAI:  Due to the pooja holidays and the copious downpour, power consumption across Tamil Nadu declined to 303.51 million units (MU) on Wednesday.

As per data from Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (Tangedco), power consumption in September was 320-330 MU per day. But with the heavy rains and holidays, consumption slumped to 312.52 MU on Saturday and 283.81 MU on Sunday.

It is expected that the demand for power will decrease further in the coming days with the onset of the northeast monsoon. A senior Tangedco official told TNIE the State-owned power utility generated only 50-60% of its capacity of 4,320 MW from coal-based thermal plants due to the low demand.

“We (Tangedco) manage the demand with a central share (4,455 MW) and wind generation (2,822 MW). The wind season, which began in May, is expected to end this month. We will then have to rely on coal-fired power plants,” the official added.

Another official said the Central government has instructed Tangedco to import 22 lakh metric tonnes (MT) of coal this financial year. As per the schedule, 7.3 lakh MT of coal will be received in February next year. For this, a tender has been floated in which 7 bidders participated. It is expected to be finalised in a couple of days.