At 16,249 MW, Punjab's power demand hits all-time high as sweltering heat continues

Punjab on Tuesday recorded its highest ever power demand at 16,249 MW as sweltering heat continued in the state, according to Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) data.
The previous highest power demand was 16,089 MW, recorded on June 29 last year. Experts said Punjab's power demand is likely to breach 17,000 MW next week amid the ongoing paddy transplantation and heatwave conditions.
'This spike, driven by relentless heat and the paddy sowing season, has put immense pressure on the PSPCL. The load graph at the State Load Dispatch Centre website of Punjab State Transmission Corporation does not show data beyond 16,000 MW and needs to be updated' said VK Gupta, a retired PSPCL engineer.
Punjab power minister Harbhajan Singh said PSPCL managed the demand without any power cuts.'This is a landmark moment. For the first time after independence, Punjab has managed its peak power demand without resorting to power cuts,' the minister said.
The maximum temperature reached 47.6 degrees Celsius in Bathinda, data from the India Meteorological Department (IMD) revealed. According to the data, the temperatures across Punjab were around five degrees Celsius above normal.
'A heatwave was observed in Amritsar, Patiala, Ludhiana and Bathinda reeled under severe heatwave,' said an IMD official.
IMD's Chandigarh centre director Surinder Pal said, 'Heatwave to severe heatwave conditions will prevail in Punjab for the next three to four days. People should avoid venturing out during the afternoon. Maximum temperature is likely to drop slightly around June 15 or 16. We are expecting rainfall from June 18.'
A PSPCL official said they are prepared to take additional measures, including importing more power and optimising local generation, to meet this anticipated demand.
PSPCL officials said that the drawing limit from the northern grid is 10, 400 MW and its maximum power availability would be around 6,400 MW under ideal conditions.
They added that all thermal units in the state were running. Among the state-run thermal plants, Ropar facility is generating 680 MW power, Lehra Mohabbat 830 MW and Goindwal 505 MW. Among those from the private sector, Rajpura thermal plant is generating 1,325 MW power and Talwandi Sabo 1,860 MW.
'All hydel units – including three units of Ranjit Sagar Dam – are operating in the afternoon as well. Usually, we operate these units in the morning as we use solar power during the day,' said a PSPCL official.
Experts said if the power demand exceeds 16,800 MW, the consumers will start facing power cuts as it will surpass the transmission capacity infrastructure of PSPCL.
The officials added that the PSPCL supplied 3,295 lakh units of power with a maximum demand of around 15,640 MW on Monday.
With inputs from HTC Chandigarh

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