Analysis of daily load dispatch data from federal grid operator POSOCO showed July power generation falling to 1.8% compared to 9.9% decline in June
Chennai, August:25 Driven by a recovery in consumption in populous northern and central states, a provisional government data showed electricity generation in India declined at much slower pace in July than compared to June, with an analysis of daily load dispatch data from federal grid operator POSOCO showing power generation falling to 1.8% compared to the 9.9% decline in June. The electricity generation declined 3.1% in the second half of July compared to the 0.6% decline during the first fifteen days of the month.
The data showed that the improvement in power demand in July has largely been led by higher consumption by populous northern, eastern and central states such as Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Rajasthan. Whereas the industrial western states such as Maharashtra and Gujarat, Delhi in the north, and the southern states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, regions which are among the most affected by the coronavirus, witnessed significant declines in electricity use. India’s factory slump deepened in July as renewed lockdown measures to contain surging coronavirus cases weighed on demand and output, raising the chances of a sharper economic contraction.
July also saw India’s fuel sales slipping when compared to June, indicating slower industrial activity as high retail prices, floods and renewed coronavirus lockdowns in parts of the country dented demand. Along with that, Renewable energy (RE) generation also fell nearly 20%, mainly due to a 41.6% decline in wind-powered electricity output. Solar-powered electricity production, however, grew 18.7% compared to 5.6% in June. Also, despite power generation from coal continuing to fall in July, coal’s contribution to overall electricity generation in July, however, rose to 64.6% compared to 61.6% in June, with gas-fired power output rising up 23.5%, the data showed.
