An “exceptionally” warm September this year saw a record-breaking power demand in Delhi. The peak power demand of the city exceeded the September 2022 levels on 80 per cent of the corresponding days, according to State Load Dispatch Centre (SLDC) data.
In fact, Delhi’s peak power demand clocked 6,993 megawatts (MW) on September 5, 2023, the highest ever for the month of September, the officials said. Last year in September, the highest peak demand was 6,687 MW.
“Delhi’s unusually hot weather was reflected in the city’s peak power demand, which remained consistently high in comparison to the similar period last year for the last couple of months,” an official said. The lowest peak power demand in September 2023 was 4,536 MW on Sep-10 on account of heavy-rains and it was just once that the city’s peak power demand fell below 5000 MW during the month. As opposed to this, on nine occasions or one-third of the time in September 2023, Delhi’s peak power demand fell below the 5000 MW, clocking 4028 MW on September 25.
August too witnessed a similar trend and except for one day, Delhi’s peak power demand surpassed August 2022 levels every day, the official added. According to the SLDC data, infact, Delhi’s peak power demand clocked the season’s high of 7438 MW on August 22, 2023. Since 2012, Delhi’s peak power demand has always clocked the season’s highest in June and July. Moreover, Delhi’s peak power demand has never crossed the 7000 MW in August. This time, crossed the 7000 MW on 4 occasions.
A BSES spokesperson said next-generation technologies like SCADA enable the discoms BRPL and BYPL to ensure reliable supply.