The temperature has barely started marching towards the hotter side, but the peak demand for power in areas catered to by the Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (Bescom) has already seen an increase.
Bescom officials said the peak demand had already touched 4,800 MW, which is at least 200 MW higher than usual for March. “The peak demand is usually around 4,500 to 4,600 MW. At present, it is around 4,700 to 4,800 MW,” said an official.
A spike in demand during summer is common with the use of cooling equipment such as air-conditioners and fans increasing, as well as the dependency on irrigation pump sets by farmers.
Bescom Managing Director P. Rajendra Cholan also said that the peak demand had touched the 5,000 MW mark last year during April and May, which was expected to happen this year as well.
Power cuts galore
Though the Energy Department has been reassuring citizens that there will not be a shortage in power supply, intermittent power supply has already hit many parts of Bengaluru, giving rise to anxiety about what is to come.
“The power cuts are now so frequent that sometimes even the power back-up goes off at night. We wonder what it will like be when summer is at its peak,” said Chandrashekhar, a resident of Kodigehalli.
‘Power available’
However, the power utility is maintaining that the State has enough power to meet the increasing demand, with the present availability being around 9,800 MW for Karnataka.
Mr. Cholan said in addition to hydel power that was kept in reserve for the summer, which could generate up to 30 million units (MU) a day, the addition of solar energy to the grid had ensured that the demand could be met. “The State had made arrangements for short-term power purchase of 1,000 MW. Apart from this, 650 MW has been commissioned from the Pavagada solar plant,” he added.
Team to look at power fluctuation
With complaints pouring in about frequent power cuts, Bescom has formed a team to look into the problem. Mr. Cholan said, “There are a lot of complaints from HSR Layout and south Bengaluru. The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. and the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Ltd. also ask for the LT line to carry out works, which leads to scheduled outage. The technical team will set it right in a few days,” he said.
An eye on the mercury
The city’s maximum temperature on Thursday was 33.3 degree Celsius and the minimum was 18.5 degree Celsius. The highest recorded temperature in March is 37.3 degree Celsius in 1996.
