Water crisis could shut two power plants in state

Mumbai:- Maharashtra seems set to face an unbearable summer as the severe water shortage could reduce the amount of thermal power generated by 47%

in April and May. Electricity minister Ajit Pawar has approved the Maharashtra State Power Generation Company Limited's (MSPGCL) proposal to shut down the Chandrapur and Parli thermal power plants in those two months.

The Chandrapur and Parli thermal plants generate 2,340 mw and 940 mw of electricity respectively. This means the state would get 3,280 mw less power from thermal plants if they are shut. MSPGCL's total thermal power generation is 6,925 mw.

Mumbai wouldn't be hit by the closures, as it has its own sources of electricity, but the suburbs of Bhandup and Mulund get power from MSPGCL. Kalyan, Dombivli, Navi Mumbai, Vasai, Virar and other areas in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region also face increased power cuts. The state, minus Mumbai, gets a total of 13,360 mw of power from MSPGCL and other sources, and a loss of 3,280 mw of power means a reduction of 25% of electricity.

Cities like Pune, Navi Mumbai, Thane, Amravati, Nagpur and Aurangabad, where the zero load-shedding model is being implemented by the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL), will have to purchase additional power to prevent load-shedding in view of the closure of the two thermal plants. This is because the demand-supply gap in the state will increase and the shortfall will be proportionately distributed among all areas in the state as per the load-shedding protocol approved by the Maharashtra electricity regulatory commission (Merc).

For Pune, purchasing additional power will also mean that consumers will have to pay a higher reliability charge than the existing 21 paise per unit.