In view of the sharp rise in the demand for electricity and severe shortage of coal for power generation, the State government has started working on long term plans to address the issue and fulfil future energy needs. It has decided to procure power from the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) to the tune of 7,000 MW at a cost-effective rate of ₹2.49 per unit, against the prevailing power exchange rate of ₹12-16 per unit, according to Energy Minister Peddireddi Ramachandra Reddy.
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Reviewing the power supply position with the power utilities in the State, Mr. Ramachandra Reddy said the government had given a guarantee on supply of reliable power to farmers in the next 25 years. Despite coal shortage, the needs of the agriculture sector would not be compromised and the SECI would supply solar power to the tune of 3,000 MW in the first tranche from September 2024 and 3,000 MW in the second tranche from September 2025 and 1,000 MW in the third tranche from September 2026.
Energy Secretary B. Sreedhar said the AP Power Development Corporation Limited (APPDCL) had already called tenders to procure 1 lakh tonnes of better grade imported coal to augment generation at the Krishnapatnam thermal power plant.
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He said further as per the directions of the Ministry of Power, tenders would be called on May 2 (Monday) for import of coal to the tune of 18 lakh tonnes by the APGENCO and 13 lakh tonnes by the APPDCL. The tender process was likely to be completed in a month, Mr. Sreedhar informed.
In view of the severe shortage of power, the Energy Minister had also directed the GENCO to expedite commissioning of the 800 MW thermal power plant at Krishnapatnam (Phase-II) before month-end or by the first week of June.
Reiterating that the prevailing power crisis in the State was a temporary phenomenon, the Minister explained that the State did not have coal pit heads and had to depend on Mahanadi Coal Fields and Singareni Collieries. “Adequate coal is not available for the thermal power plants due to constraints at the national and international level. Meanwhile, there is an unexpected rise in demand due to abnormal increase in the temperatures and consequently the power purchase cost has hit a record high in the last 10 years,” he said, adding that limited availability of power in the open market had forced the utilities to impose restrictions in the industrial sector.