Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) has confirmed that the availability of an additional 400 MW of power helped limit power curbs to a few places in the state on Tuesday. The confirmation comes amid allegations of delay by the Electricity Minister K. Krishnankutty in allowing additional power procurement to meet summer demand.
According to sources, the additional power supply was made available after the KSEB successfully completed its tender process for the procurement of 400 MW of power from external sources. The power will be sourced from the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) and will be utilized to supplement the existing power generation capacity in the state.
The development comes as a relief to the residents of Kerala, who had faced power curbs due to a shortage of electricity in various parts of the state on Tuesday. The KSEB had initially announced that it would not be able to meet the summer demand, resulting in power curbs being imposed in several districts.
However, with the additional power supply coming into effect, the KSEB was able to reduce the number of places where power curbs were imposed. According to reports, only a few areas in Kerala still faced power curbs on Tuesday, and the situation is expected to improve further as the additional power supply becomes more widespread.
The confirmation by the KSEB comes amid allegations that the Electricity Minister K. Krishnankutty was delaying the process of allowing additional power procurement to meet summer demand. The opposition parties in Kerala have been criticizing the government’s handling of the electricity crisis, accusing them of not taking adequate measures to address the issue.
In a statement, the KSEB said that it had been working tirelessly to ensure that the state’s power generation capacity is augmented to meet the summer demand. The board added that it was pleased with the outcome of the tender process and expected the additional power supply to help alleviate the electricity crisis in the state.
The Electricity Minister K. Krishnankutty met with the Kerala State Electricity Regulatory Commission (KSERC) on Tuesday, amid allegations of delay in allowing additional power procurement to meet summer demand. The minister has assured that all necessary measures will be taken to ensure that the state’s power generation capacity is augmented to meet the summer demand.
The KSERC had recently directed the KSEB to procure an additional 400 MW of power from external sources to meet the summer demand. The commission had given a deadline of May 31 for the procurement of the power, and the KSEB had announced that it would not be able to meet this deadline due to various reasons.
However, the KSERC has now directed the KSEB to expedite the process and complete the procurement of the additional power supply by June 15. The commission added that failure to comply with the directive could result in further penalties and action being taken against the KSEB.
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