New Delhi: Power demand touched an all-time high of 187.3 GW on Friday, highlighting the growing strength of the economy, Power Minister R K Singh said. "A fresh record has been created in Power Demand breaching the previous record of 1,85,820 MW which was created on January 20, 2021. Today the power demand touched 1,87,300 MW at 10:28 am. This again underscores the growing strength of our economy," Singh said in a tweet. On December 30 last year, all-India power demand had touched 182.89 GW. According to data from the power ministry, the peak power demand met (the highest supply in a day) during January last year stood at 170.97 GW. The rising power demand shows revival in economic activities leading to higher commercial and industrial demand, which was affected due to the pandemic. The government had imposed a nationwide lockdown on March 25, 2020 to contain the spread of COVID-19. Power demand started declining from April as economic activities were disrupted due to COVID-19. The … [Read more...] about Power demand at all-time high of 187.3 GW: Power Minister R K Singh
Wind power vs solar power vs hydropower
Battery storage cheaper than new coal power plants: Analysis
New Delhi: A new economic viability analysis on Friday revealed that renewable energy along with battery storage in Tamil Nadu is cost competitive with new coal power plants.The report finds the levelized cost of energy for a hypothetical hybrid, solar, wind and li-ion battery storage system for the state to be Rs 4.97/kWh in 2021, which falls to Rs 3.4/kWh by 2030.In comparison, cost of electricity produced from new coal power plants in Tamil Nadu is between Rs 4.5-6/kWh.The hybrid system is designed to cater to 1GW of solar and wind capacity in 2021 with two hours of battery backup, which increases step wise to a four-hour backup by 2030.The research further highlighted that lithium-based battery storage systems could also help reduce curtailment of renewable energy. Close to 50 per cent of solar power in Tamil Nadu was curtailed since the lockdown in March 2020.Similarly, its curtailment of wind power in 2019 went up to 3.52hours per day from 1.87 hours per day in 2018."Our analysis … [Read more...] about Battery storage cheaper than new coal power plants: Analysis
China’s illegal ‘profiteering’ in power sector leads to massive blackouts in Pakistan
Peshawar: China has invested billions in Pakistan's power sector but all the deals made with Pakistan are tainted that contributed to the recent nationwide blackout, which is likely to return in future, reported Asia Times.Citing a report of the nine-member committee headed by Muhammad Ali, a former chairperson of the Security and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) of April 2020 FM Shakil, writing an opinion piece in Asia Times said the report made startling revelations about widespread malpractice in the power sector.The report lifted the lid on the extent of Independent Power Producer (IPP) corruption, including among Chinese units installed under a government-to-government arrangement for China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) related operation.The report traced 100 billion Pakistrupees (USD 625 million) in annual over-payment to the IPPs and discussed the magnitude of illegal "profiteering" of Chinese energy companies.Asia Times disclosed that Huaneng Shandong Ruyi Energy … [Read more...] about China’s illegal ‘profiteering’ in power sector leads to massive blackouts in Pakistan
Five trends that will dominate Indian power sector in 2021
New Delhi: 2021 promises to be a year of hope and optimism. Despite the challenges of ill-fated 2020, current backdrop of recovery in global sentiment, bounce back in local demand, ample liquidity and favorable oil prices provides a supportive launchpad for India to lead the journey of economic recovery in 2021. One sector which is expected to play a crucial role in this recovery is the Indian power sector.In the wake of the challenges of a global pandemic, nationwide lockdown, unprecedented collapse in country’s economic activity and GDP, 2020 has also left behind a lot of learnings. The world as we know it has changed and with it has emerged a new perspective to face challenges by constantly evolving and pre-empting the changing need of the consumers and businesses. While the power demand is expected to slowly limp back to high-single digits in tandem with GDP growth, several over-arching fundamental trends are expected to drive the sector transformation in 2021:Technology: The … [Read more...] about Five trends that will dominate Indian power sector in 2021
Why Republicans are still in charge of some key Senate proceedings as Schumer and McConnell work on power-sharing
That's how we start the day and end the week. The talks of bipartisanship are quickly getting ensnared by must-move Senate business, not the least of which is getting an agreement on how the Senate will be run over the next two years. It seems simple, but it's a big deal and it's proving far harder to secure than anyone had anticipated. … [Read more...] about Why Republicans are still in charge of some key Senate proceedings as Schumer and McConnell work on power-sharing
