Aman Sood
Patiala, June 8
The recent coal shortage and parallel arrangements made by the Punjab Government to meet the rising demand during the paddy season will further pinch the common man in the state. Consumers can expect a power price hike ranging from 70 paise to Re 1 per unit depending on the imported coal consumption to meet the peak paddy season demand.
Govt all prepared
There will be no shortage of power during the paddy season. All arrangements have been made to meet the demand. Harbhajan Singh, Power minister
WILL ENSURE MAXIMUM SUPPLY
Either the govt absorbs the shock or it will have to be passed on to the consumers. More than the cost, our focus right now is on ensuring maximum power supply. Senior PSPCL official
The consumers will have to share the burden of costly power due to the blending of the imported coal with the Indian one as per the recent orders of the ministry. Already Punjab’s power demand is high this season and the limited coal stock has added to the worries of Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL).
Punjab has already placed an order for 1.5 lakh tonne of coal from Indonesia, which will cost it around Rs 350 crore. More coal will be ordered to meet the peak season demand.
The power demand in the state has been hovering around 10,000 MW with the paddy season almost a week away and will touch around 15,500 MW during the peak period. The coal imported from Indonesia costs around $200 per tonne (Rs 15,000). Add another Rs 3,300 per tonne transportation charges from the seaport in Gujarat to Punjab, which will ultimately be borne by the consumers.
In this regard, All India Power Engineers Federation (AIPEF) spokesperson VK Gupta said the use of imported coal would increase the power tariff by 70 paise to Re 1 per unit for financial year 2022-23. “This increase will be passed on to the consumer in the form of a quarterly fuel surcharge adjustment. This is the second time in the past nine months that the coal crisis has occurred and this may again happen during monsoon,” Gupta added.
Recently following a high demand and insufficient coal supply, the Power Ministry unilaterally directed states to import coal without caring to take into account the technical implications of using imported one in plants. “Most power plants do not have the necessary facilities for the proper blending of coal and this could damage the boiler,” said a senior engineer with the PSPCL.
“The Centre has allowed the private generators using imported coal to pass on the full import cost to the state utilities in deviation from the terms of the existing power purchase agreements (PPAs). Earlier, the NDA government did not allow the states to renegotiate the PPAs. Now it has revised tariffs upward to suit the interests of the private generators (IPPs),” claimed Gupta.
Meanwhile, a senior PSPCL official attached with the coal procurement and managing supply to the thermal plants said the additional stock being imported would put more financial burden and it had to be ultimately borne by the consumers.
Imported coal burden Rs 800 cr
- The minimum cost difference between domestic and imported coal will be about Rs 13,500 per tonne
- Punjab will have to bear an extra expenditure of Rs 800 crore if it imports all 6 lakh tonne of coal
Coal imports may push power rates up by Rs 1/unit in Punjab
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