Power deficit rises slightly to 0.6% in Apr-Nov; demand surges around 11%

Experts said that power deficit happens mainly because of technical reasons. They opined that India is a power surplus state but sometimes discoms dont have funds to afford round-the-clock supply

Power deficit in the country rose slightly to 0.6 per cent in April-November this fiscal year, while electricity demand has witnessed around 11 per cent jump in the said period, indicating buoyancy in the economy.

The latest government data available showed that the power deficit in the country stood at 5,691 million units (MU) in April to November 2022, while it was 4,058 MU in the same period a year ago.

Experts are of the view that power deficit happens mainly because of technical reasons. They opined that India is a power surplus state but sometimes discoms dont have funds to afford round-the-clock supply of electricity.

The power producers supplied 10,12,249 MU in April-November 2022, against the demand of 10,17,940 MU, which resulted in a power deficit of 0.6 per cent.

Similarly power producers had supplied 916,529 MU in April-November 2021, against the demand of 920,587 MU, which had resulted in a power deficit of 0.4 per cent.

The data showed that the electricity requirement or demand has increased by around 11 per cent in April-November 2022, compared to the same period in 2021.

The experts pointed out that the increase in electricity demand reflects sustained recovery in commercial and industrial activities which were affected due to the pandemic, especially in 2020 and 2021.

Power consumption has also increased by over 10 per cent to 10,12,249 MU in April-November 2022, from 916,529 MU a year ago.

According to experts, the surge in power consumption and demand would also grow in double-digit in the coming days.

The data shows that the peak power demand met or the highest supply in a day remained over 202 GW level in December 2022, which indicates buoyancy in the economy.

The peak power demand met stood at 183.24 GW in December, 2021 while it was 187.38 GW in November 2022.

The highest supply in a day was 170.49 GW in December 2019 (pre-pandemic period) and 182.78 GW in December 2020. Further, power demand has picked up in December 2022 also, the data showed.