Power-starved Kerala’s share from the central pool has gone up by 50 MW with a new unit getting operational on Sunday at the National Thermal Power Corporation’s (NTPC) Simhadri power plant in Andhra Pradesh.
With this, the state’s share from the central pool has increased to 1,676 MW, Minister of State for Power K C Venugopal said.
The installed capacity of the new unit at Simhadri is 500 MW and it will be fully operational in a week’s time, Venugopal said.
Kerala is already receiving 50 MW from the existing plant at Simhadri, he said.
The additional 50 MW has come as a windfall for the state which is floundering in acute power crisis. Failed southwest monsoon, poor planning and financial problems have landed the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) in a mess.
With the water level in its hydel reservoirs not up to the mark, the KSEB has drastically revised the target for hydel power generation till May 2013.
At present, Kerala is buying heavily from the NTPC’s naphtha-based Rajiv Gandhi Combined Cycle Power Project in Kayamkulam where the purchase price is currently Rs 12.20 per unit. The KSEB’s average realisation per unit is only Rs 4.43.
According to the KSEB, it is facing ‘’severe financial crisis’’ even after the tariff revision in July. This is due to excessive power purchases, it has told the State Electricity Regulatory Commission.
In September, the KSEB had procured short term loans and overdrafts of Rs 2,851 crore. It owes the NTPC Rs 322 crore for power purchases made in July and August.
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