Power demand, which ranged between 7,800 megawatts and 9,200 megawatts in December, has risen to 11,100 megawatts this year and could exceed 15,000 megawatts next March.
Post Date – 11:35 PM, Wednesday – 12/21/22
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Hyderabad: With electricity demand likely to increase in the state next year, utilities are gearing up for an upcoming surge in usage.
Power demand, which ranged between 7,800 megawatts and 9,200 megawatts in December, has risen to 11,100 megawatts this year and could exceed 15,000 megawatts next March. G Raghuma Reddy, chairman and managing director of Telangana State Southern Power Distribution Company Limited (TSSPDCL), said electricity demand in the state is increasing and electricity consumption is likely to increase significantly next year as well. He said peak demand of 14,160 megawatts was recorded on March 29 this year and could reach 15,000 megawatts next summer.
He said distribution companies were doing everything possible to ensure uninterrupted power supply to consumers amid rising demand from the industrial, agricultural and domestic sectors. The state’s daily usage has increased from 179 million units last year to 205 million units this year, with further increases likely next year.
He said Hyderabad has developed into an international city and its electricity demand is growing at a faster rate. The maximum electricity consumption recorded earlier this summer was 3,435 megawatts and is expected to exceed 4,000 megawatts next summer, compared to the current consumption of 71.49 million units and may record more than 80 million units next year, he said.
He said that during the last eight years of the TRS government, the massive increase in generation capacity and strengthening of the distribution system ensured 24X7 electricity supply to all sectors in the state. In less than a decade, Telangana has witnessed a remarkable development in the power sector, transforming from a power deficit state to a power surplus state. He informed that since the inception of the country, the power supply and transmission system has been strengthened at a cost of about Rs 375 billion.
When the country was founded, the installed capacity was 7,778 MW and today it is 17,829 MW, he said. Likewise, only 51 220 KV substations have been increased to 99. A total of 137 new EHT (extra high voltage) substations were established after the founding of the People’s Republic of China. “Currently, we are providing high-quality uninterruptible power to various consumers through 370 EHT substations,” he said.
Since the formation of Telangana, about 5.4 million new services have been approved and nearly 350,000 new services were approved in Hyderabad last year. The number of agricultural electricity consumers increased from 1.8 million to 2.7 million.
He has observed that due to the Kaleshwaram project and increased groundwater tables, farmers are planting rice crops earlier due to abundant water resources and 24-hour quality electricity supply for agriculture.
