JOIN USLockdown: Power consumption in Karnataka drops as businesses plug off
The ongoing lockdown has reduced Karnataka’s power consumption by around 20% compared to the figure on the same day last year.
While power use generally peaks in the summer months due to increased domestic demand, the shutdown of commercial enterprises and industries has decreased the load on electricity supply companies (Escoms).
Considering uncertainties over the lockdown, authorities say enough coal and other energy sources were available to ensure continuous supply during the lockdown.
According to data by Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Ltd (KPTCL), power consumption in the state on March 26 stood at 214.74 million units (MU) as against 257.5 MU on the same day last year, a dip of around 16.6%.
There was a significant reduction in consumption soon after the lockdown was announced. While power use was 241.65 MU on March 23, when the state government announced a lockdown, it dipped to 224.7 MU on March 24 and 215.74 MU on March 25.
Additional Chief Secretary (Energy) Mahendra Jain told DH that the department was providing uninterrupted power as many people were working from home. “We are taking steps to ensure work from home and social distancing is not interrupted (by power cuts),” he said.
Overall consumption is 10-15% less as commercial and industrial use has declined. There were no constraints for power generation in Karnataka and the department had a contingency plan for transmission and distribution, Jain said.
KPTCL managing director N Manjula said that while thermal units are being used to generate power, hydel units are being kept as a back-up in case quarantine measures are made more stringent. "Hydel units can be operated by fewer employees than thermal units, and will be used to generate power only in case of exigencies," she said
While the losses suffered by Escoms during the period of lockdown was yet to be estimated, officials said that reduced use also implied that less power was being bought from other states. The companies will suffer some loss due to the decreased demand overall, sources added.