Hyderabad Feels Growing Hunger For Power

Hyderabad: As the day temperatures rising sharply in February itself, the power demand in Greater Hyderabad is also increasing. The power distribution companies now fear having to enforce widespread power cuts in the days leading into the summer. The day temperatures are already hovering around the 35 degrees Celsius mark, while it was in the mid 20’s during the same period last year.

Hyderabad Feels Growing Hunger For Power (3)

Several sections of the city will face 2-4 hour power shutdowns until the second week of March. The reason being stated is maintenance work. Southern discom officials said the demand has touched 45 million units (MU) a day, which is about 2,200 Mega Watt. Generally, the demand in Greater Hyderabad is around 40 MU a day in February. It touches 45 MU only in April and close to 50 MU per day in May. The highest power demand recorded during summer last year was 53 MU on May 27, 2015.

The officials also said that the power demand is expected to go up from 53 million units to nearly 58 MU this year during the peak summer. “This year, we expect it to touch 58 MU in the coming summer,” SPDCL director (operations) J Srinivas Reddy said.

Officials said the demand has been rising since the first week of February. On February 2, the power consumption stood at 40 MU, and on February 3 it was 43 MU. From the very next day, the demand reached 44 MU. On February 11, it touched 45 MU, which was the highest in this month.

Of the total demand from the entire southern discom covering Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy, Medak, Mahbubnagar and Nalgonda, 75% of the power is being supplied in Greater Hyderabad. The requirement is generally lesser during the weekends as most offices and industries remain closed.

The discoms are meeting the demand for now and even Srinivas Reddy says the state has surplus power and will not have to impose power cuts during the summer. But sources said that with the demand nearly peaking in February itself, there would be more burdens on the equipment and distribution transformers.

With this in mind, the SPDCL has started maintenance works on all power lines and distribution transformers and is planning to complete it by the second week of March. Due to this, several areas in the city are witnessing power cuts for two to four hours.

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