Gandhinagar : Gujarat’s electricity grid recorded an all-time peak demand of 29,822MW on Oct 16, marking a 36% increase from the 21,822MW logged during the same period last year and highlighting the growing pressure on the state’s energy infrastructure.
Dismissing rumours of a power shortage, a senior official said consumers need not worry about supply disruptions. The unprecedented demand prompted a review meeting chaired by energy minister Rushikesh Patel and minister of state Kaushik Vekariya with officials from the energy and petrochemicals department, the State Load Dispatch Centre (SLDC) and power utilities. The official, however, urged citizens to shift discretionary electricity use to daytime hours and conserve power between 5pm and 11pm until temperatures moderate.
To ensure adequate fuel supply, the Union ministry of coal has assured Gujarat State Electricity Corporation Ltd (GSECL) of 10 to 11 coal rakes a day until Nov, with allocations expected to rise to 13 to 14 rakes thereafter. Currently, 192MW of storage capacity is operational, contracts have been finalised for 2,742MW/5,517MWh, and a fresh tender for 1,000MW/4,000MWh is under way. Officials said the proposed system would be capable of supplying 1,000MW continuously for four hours during evening peak demand.
As a long-term solution to bridge the gap between sunset and peak demand hours, Gujarat is expanding battery energy storage systems (BESS).