The Hindu Bureau THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
Electricity consumption in Kerala stood over 100 million units (MU) for the second consecutive day, as soaring summer heat and truant summer rainfall have triggered a spike in energy use in April.
Load despatch centre data pegged the consumption on Friday, April 14, at 100.08 MU. Consumption had for the first time crossed the 100 MU-mark in the southern state on April 13 (100.30 MU), upsetting projections made by the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB), the state-run distribution licencee.
To compare, the total consumption on February 14 was 80.8 MU.
Nevertheless, the KSEB has, for the moment, ruled out a crisis situation as power purchase agreements and ‘swap deals’ planned in edvance for the summer are expected to see the state through till June and the onset of the southwest monsoon.
That said, weak summer showers and a delayed monsoon onset could spell trouble for Kerala on the power front. Reservoir storage in the hydroelectric dams maintained by the KSEB was down to 40% (equivalent to 1671.5 MU) on Friday, the lowest since 2019.
The KSEB is planning to review the power situation next week and has appealed to the people to reduce electricity use between 6 p.m. and 11 p.m., the peak evening hours.
Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department has forecast light to moderate showers across Kerala till at least April 19. The state has so far recorded a 38% deficiency in seasonal summer rainfall.
The highest recorded electricity consumption levels for Kerala this summer are as follows: April 10 (90.61 MU), April 11 (95.61 MU), April 12 (98.45 MU), April 13 (100.30 MU), April 14 (100.08 MU).
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