India records peak power deficit of 4%: CEA

New Delhi: The country’s peak power deficit—shortfall in electricity supply when the demand is at the maximum point—was 5,378 MW or 4 percent last month. The deficit was much lower than recorded in January 2013. According to the latest data by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), the total peak power demand in the country last month was 1,33,506 MW, of which 1,28,128 MW was met - leaving a shortage of 5,378 MW.[caption id=“attachment_1392673” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Facing power deficit. Reuters[/caption] “This (improvement in deficit situation) is due to decreased power demand and increase in capacity addition,” Deloitte India senior Director Debasish Mishra said. Peak power deficit in January 2013 was 11.4 per cent. The power demand then was 1,32,948 MW against a supply of 1,17,790 MW, according to the CEA data. The north-eastern region was the worst effected, registering a deficit of 8.2 percent or 171 MW. The total demand for electricity in the seven sister states—Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Tripura and Mizoram—was 2,096 MW as compared to a supply of 1,925 MW. North Indian states/UTs – Chandigarh, Delhi, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand reported a peak power shortage of 5.1 percent. The total electricity demand in the region last month was 40,300 MW, of which 38,227 MW was met, as per the CEA data. The peak power deficit in the southern region of the country—Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Lakshadweep—was 4.4 per cent at 1,573 MW. The electricity requirement of the region was 35,736 MW, of which the supply was 34,163 MW. The western region, which includes Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Goa, reported a power shortage of 3.4 percent. The demand was 41,109 MW against a supply of 39,731 MW. The electricity requirement in eastern states including West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar and Jharkhand in December was 14,265 MW while the supply was 14,082 MW, leaving the region with a shortage of 183 MW or 1.3 percent deficit. PTI