Delhi’s Power Consume Rises To Breach 7,000 MW This Summer

Delhi’s power demand has started to rise under the combined influence of the city’s unblocking and weather conditions, crossing the mark of more than 5,000 megawatts (MW) in one night for the first time this summer, discom officials said.

Real-time data from the State Load Dispatch Center (SLDC) showed Delhi’s peak power demand was 5,808 MW at 3.45 pm on Tuesday. It was 5,559 MW at 11.19 pm on Monday, the highest so far this season.

“The increase in power demand corresponds to the gradual unblocking in Delhi and the weather conditions,” said a discom official.

With an improvement in the COVID-19 situation, markets, shopping malls and independent stores reopened in the city on Monday under the gradual unlocking process adopted by the Delhi government. Subway trains also resumed service on Monday after nearly a month.

Delhi’s peak energy demand in June is up to 33 percent higher than the corresponding peak energy demand in the first eight days of June last year.

Last year, Delhi’s peak power demand recorded through June 8 was 4,611 MW.

Due to the lockdown, Delhi’s peak power demand recorded last year was 6,314 MW on June 29. It was lower than the all-time peak power demand of 7,409 MW on July 2, 2019, authorities said.

This year, Delhi’s peak power demand is expected to be in the range of 7,000 MW to 7,400 MW, considering weather conditions and lockdown. It was originally estimated at around 7,900 MW, they said.

Despite the imposition of the lockdown since April 19, Delhi’s peak power demand in April and May this year was higher than the corresponding peak power demand in April and May last year, officials said.

“In fact, out of the 61 days in April and May, Delhi’s peak energy demand was higher on 48 days or 78 percent of the days compared to the corresponding period last year,” they said.

Ensuring reliable supply in any season is as much a function of proper power arrangements as it is of accurate demand forecasting and a strong distribution network, said a BSES spokesperson who is unaware of BRPL and BYPL.

BSES problems are completely geared towards all these aspects to meet the energy demand of our more than 4.5 million consumers and 18 million residents in South, West, East, and Central Delhi during the summer months, he added.

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