Delhi govt, DERC ask Union govt to prevent blackouts

A day after the Union power ministry issued an order to divert 728MW of electricity from Delhi to Haryana from April 1, the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) and the Delhi government on Wednesday separately wrote to the Union government, requesting it to ensure adequate supply to the national capital to save the city from “blackouts” during summer, when the peak demand is projected to touch 8,000MW.

The matter was also urgently placed before the Delhi high court on Wednesday, which stayed the implementation of the order. The next date of hearing in the matter is April 1.

Also Read | Delhi HC stays Centre’s order to divert power from Capital’s share to Haryana

The Union power ministry, in two separate communications issued on Monday and Tuesday, ordered the diversion of 728MW power allocated to Delhi from NTPC plant in Dadri (Dadri-2) to Haryana from April 1, citing a letter from Delhi power minister Satyendar Jain in July 2015.

Power utilities in Delhi said the ministry’s directive to the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) was issued without prior notice and could lead to outages in the national capital. The peak demand in Delhi touched 7,323 MW on July 2, 2021, and is likely to touch 8,200MW this summer, the discoms said.

The DERC secretary, in a letter to the power ministry, requested it to “immediately withdraw” the reallocation order to avoid blackouts in certain parts of the national capital.

“Electricity being in the Concurrent List of the Constitution and responsibility of all stakeholders to ensure supply of 24X7 power in the capital of India, no reallocation of power from Delhi to other states can be done unilaterally by MoP (Ministry of Power), Government of India, without concurrence of the DERC, Delhi government and Delhi distribution licensees,” the DERC said in its letter.

The special secretary of the Delhi power department also wrote to the ministry requesting directions to central sector power generating stations to ensure availability of electricity to Delhi as per the state’s allocation, especially from hydro power plants, Dadri-2 and Aravali (Jhajjar). This will help avoid purchase of costly power from exchanges or gas-based stations, the letter further said.

Delhi’s discoms also wrote to the Centre stating that electricity from NTPC’s Dadri-2 plant is “extremely crucial” for ensuring energy security of the national capital. The reallocation will lead to a power crisis in the city and impact around 23% of consumers, besides essential services, including hospitals, vaccination centres, and strategic and defence installations, they said.

“The reallocation of power to Delhi from Dadri-2 is also beyond comprehension as the power purchase agreement of discoms for scheduling power from Dadri-2 is valid and in force till July 30, 2035, when it completes the stipulated 25 years,” a power department official said, on condition of anonymity.

The discoms also said arranging such a large quantum of power (728 MW) at short notice may not be easy as it will not be readily available with the power exchange, where the rates are fluctuating between ₹10-15 per unit, the officials said.