With summer setting in early, Gujarat on April 8 recorded a peak power demand of 20,277 Megawatt (MW), which is the highest-ever demand for electricity recorded in a day. “Gujarat has reached the highest demand for over 20,000 MW. The per head average power consumption in the state is 2150 units, while in other states the average consumption is 1150 units,” Kanu Desai, State Energy Minister told The Indian Express. As per Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Limited’s (GUVNL) State Load Dispatch Centre (SLDC) — which functions under its transmission arm Gujarat Energy Transmission Corporation Ltd. (GETCO) — the 20,277 MW recorded on April 8 is the highest-ever maximum peak power demand that Gujarat has recorded. On the same day the minimum power demand catered was 17,204 MW. The previous high clocked in Gujarat was 19,431 MW, on August 17, 2021. Gujarat government officials have attributed the spike in demand for electricity to the increase in the temperature levels across the State and revival of increased commercial activities after slowdown caused by Covid-19 along with agriculture demand. On Friday, temperatures in the state crossed the 45 degrees Celsius mark and in cities like Ahmedabad, the temperatures hovered around 44 degrees Celsius. If we look at the past trends for electricity demands during the month of April in Gujarat, the maximum demand catered was 13,508 MW on April 30, 2020, and the maximum energy supplied was 296 million units on the same day. In April 2021, the maximum demand catered was 19,360 MW. While industries in Gujarat consume 60 per cent of the electricity, agriculture consumes 22 per cent, while the remaining 18 per cent is consumed by smaller consumers including residential users. The electricity needed by the state is being sourced from the power generation company of Gujarat, GSECL (Gujarat State Electricity Corporation Limited), which generated 3,932 MW of power, while private power producers generated an additional 3,479 MW. Wind generation was around 2,264 MW, solar generation was 1,454 MW, and Central Sector drawl was 9149 MW. “As Gujarat is finding it to meet the daily power requirements, it is purchasing power from the Indian Energy Exchange at Rs 9.5-10 per unit,” said KK Bajaj, energy regulatory expert in Gujarat. In order to meet the high requirement of power in the state this summer, Gujarat government has already imposed a mandatory staggered weekly holiday for industries in the state.
