Piyush Goyal to meet Jaitley to discuss hydro projects

"It is not as if hydropoer is a forgotten aspect, but right now I have been focussing on solar," says the Power Minister

B.LINE:For File:Piyush Goyal, the Minister of State (IC) for Power, Coal & New and Renewable Energy , in New Delhi on 18.12.15. Pic : Kamal Narang

Power Minister Piyush Goyal will be meeting Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on July 8 to discuss the country’s hydroelectric projects.

“It is not as if hydropower is a forgotten aspect, but right now I have been focussing on solar.

But even now… tomorrow the Finance Minister will be meeting me and some other ministers to discuss the situation of hydro projects in the country,” Mr. Goyal said in response to question on hydropower during an event here.

Grid breakdowns

The minister — who was speaking on the Internet of Things — said that he as incorporated technology to prevent a recurrence of the grid breakdowns of 2012.

“We have been able to create a robust control room that can map out and predict weather, and then modify the grid’s functioning accordingly,” Mr. Goyal said. “For example, during the Hudhud cyclone in Vishakapatnam, we were able to shut down the city’s grid in parts as the cyclone approached, thereby saving lives and preventing a lot of damage.”

He also pointed out that the use of technology would not affect employment in any significant manner since technology would lead to consumer benefits, which would bolster demand, which would in turn lead to growth and increased employment.

Regarding the prospect of the country’s power infrastructure being held hostage to cyber attacks, Mr Goyal said: “I have just engaged a recently-retired IPS officer to work on the architecture against cyber attacks in power.”

However, the Minister did acknowledge that hackers often stay one step ahead of those trying to stop them.

Power cuts

Mr. Goyal also spoke about the power cuts around the city, and said that this was not due to a shortage of electricity.

“The cuts are not due to a shortage but they depend on how we manage demand and supply of electricity,” Mr. Goyal said. “There are still some states that do not buy electricity from the exchange even when they have a shortage.

“There is enough coal in the system so that if no coal is produced for 50 days, there will still be electricity during that time.”

“There is a mismatch between the availability of power and the ability of states to purchase and distribute it ,” Mr. Goyal said.