Gas-based power generation in India till January this year was less than half of the total generation last year, as per data released by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA). The data shows that a total of 20,268.17 million units was generated by gas thermal units till January 2023, against a total of 50,000 million units generated in the entire financial year 2021-22.
In India, gas-based power generation units are situated along various river basins. A total of 23,845.05 MW is the gas-based power capacity in both central, state and private sectors. Out of this, private and independent power producers have a total capacity of 10,285.24MW.
“The CEA monitors 62 gas-based power stations, with a total capacity of 23,845 MW using gas as primary fuel. The requirement of gas for these power plants at 90% Plant Load Factor (PLF) is 115 million metric standard cubic meters per day (MMSCMD). During the year 2022-23 (April, 2022 to January, 2023), the total gas available to the power sector was only about 16.14 MMSCMD, comprising 13.21 MMSCMD domestic gas and 2.93 MMSCMD imported Re-gasified Liquefied Natural Gas (RLNG),” said a senior CEA official.
“During 2022-23 (April, 2022 to January, 2023), the gas-based capacity of 9,308 MW (28 gas-based plants) had NIL generation and the overall PLF of gas-based power plants remained only around 12% due to less availability of domestic gas and high price of imported RLNG,” said the official.
Out of the total 20,268.17 million units, central sector gas units generated 8,597.41 million units and those in the state sector generated 9,523.72 million units. Private gas units which had to depend mostly on imported RLNG, could generate only 2,147.04 million units.
In order to meet the projected peak demand of around 230 GW during April-May, 2023, the Government of India approved a mechanism for operationalisation of around 5000MW NTPC gas-based capacity in this period.
Further, the government has also planned for additional procurement of power from gas-based capacity (other than NTPC) plants during this period, he said.
The states in which gas-based thermal units are situated include Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Assam, Tripura, Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Uttarakhand.
Natural gas is a clean fuel compared to coal, and can be efficiently used in power generation. As the domestic coal supply is generally of low quality with low calorific values, high degree of ash content and its adverse impacts on the environment, the Government of India encourages gas-based power generation. The use of gas in power-generation was initially promoted by the Government primarily with a view to improve environmental conditions.
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