The electricity demand in Punjab hit an unprecedented 16,078 MW recently, resulting in the state power utility – Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) – taking steps to efficiently manage the situation.
According to reports, the tripping of a 660 MW unit at a private thermal plant due to a boiler tube leak led to a shortage in supply. In order to balance demand and ensure an uninterrupted power supply to residential sectors experiencing heavy use during peak hours, PSPCL temporarily reduced supply to agricultural feeders.
PSPCL officials have stated that no power cuts were imposed statewide and that supply was only optimized from certain agricultural lines for a few hours. They maintained that farmers were compensated with additional power during off-peak night hours.
Local outages in some areas were attributed to technical glitches rather than a lack of availability. Engineers have appealed to the public to conserve energy by setting AC units to 26°C and for farmers to delay paddy sowing/planting of vacant fields by a week.
The malfunctioning 660 MW unit is expected to be repaired within two days, after which supply will normalize. PSPCL received approval to draw excess power from the Northern Grid to bridge the shortfall. Maintaining coal stock levels and running hydro units will also help meet the rising demand in the coming days.
