A day after the power and coal ministers assuaged concerns of blackouts due to shortage of coal reserves, power secretary Alok Kumar said the supply situation was under control.
Speaking exclusively to CNBC-TV18, Kumar said: “There are power shortages in some pockets in certain states but the power supply situation is under control. The power shortage is not very critical.”
He added that certain states have huge outstanding to coal companies, while some states had low coal stocks to begin with. “Rajasthan had not paid their captive coal mine developer. Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and UP need to clear dues to coal companies to sustain supplies. There is no problem of payments from Gujarat and Haryana.”
Kumar said the coal secretary had assured him that supplies would be ramped up down the line, ensuring that NTPC plants have adequate coal.
“Average power exchanges are quoting Rs 12-13/unit. More power supply is likely to bring prices down further. Coal production will definitely go up,” he said.
The shortages in India – the world’s largest coal consumer after China – follow widespread outages in neighbouring China, which has shut factories and schools to manage the crisis.
Over half of India’s 135 coal-fired power plants, which in total supply around 70% of India’s electricity, have fuel stocks of less than three days, data from the Centrall grid operator showed.
Energy supplies are under strain globally as prices surge and demand and supply chains are strained by the recovery of consumption following lockdowns to contain the pandemic. India’s power shortfall in the first seven days of October was over 21 times the deficit in the same period last year, and more than four times of that in 2019.
However, Power Minister RK Singh on Sunday warned GAIL and Tata Power against “acts of irresponsible behaviour” that created “unnecessary panic” among customers about power outages due to a shortage of coal, saying the country has reserves for another 4-5 days.
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