Delhi power demand hits all-time high amid cold spell

NEW DELHI: The ongoing cold spell in the national capital’s pushed the city’s peak winter power demand to an all-time high of 5,559 MW on January 5, discom officials said. According to real-time data from the State Load Dispatch Centre, Delhi’s peak winter power demand clocked 5,559 MW at 11.05 am.

The officials said the previous highest peak demand witnessed in the city during the winter season was 5,526 MW on January 6, 2023. A BSES spokesperson said that BRPL (BSES Rajdhani Power Limited) and BYPL (BSES Yamuna Power Limited) successfully met the spike in power demand of 2,379 MW and 1,136 MW, respectively, in their areas.

Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL), which supplies power in North Delhi, met a peak power demand of 1,735 MW, a company spokesperson said. “Tata Power-DDL is adequately prepared for the winter season and has been working towards strengthening its power network and conducting preventive maintenance and condition- based maintenance of all critical electrical installations.

Additional staff has been deployed at key locations across the distribution network and call centre staff have been alerted to provide faster resolution of complaints through coordination with ground staff,” the spokesperson added. Discom officials said the surge in power demand was due to increased use of electricity for heating purposes.

BSES discoms are fully geared to ensure adequate power availability for nearly 50 lakh consumers or around two crore residents during winter months, the spokesperson said. Apart from long-term agreements with power plants, more than 2,000 MW of green power will play a significant role in ensuring reliable supply to BSES consumers during the winter months, he said.

In case of unforeseeable contingency, BSES discoms will buy short-term power from the exchange. Adding to these efforts are the advanced load-forecasting statistical and modelling techniques, which are helping the discoms accurately forecast power demand, he added. Meanwhile minimum temperature settled at 9.4 degrees Celsius on Friday with an orange alert issued for Delhi due to shallow to moderate fog and cold conditions.