Shortfall in supply of coal by the Centre leaves power stations in Karnataka with only a day’s supply

Coal reserves in Karnataka’s thermal power stations have plummeted to dangerous levels, sparking concerns that regular power supply in the State may be affected. While there has been no load shedding so far, officials at the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited (KPTCL) have said that there was a possibility that if the coal supply was not regularised immediately, supply to irrigation pumps could be affected in rural areas. According to senior officials, shortage of coal supplied by the Central government has led to this crisis.

The existing coal reserves are set to last only a day in the three thermal power stations in the State. On an average, 12 to 15 rakes of coal (each rake contains around 800 tonnes of coal) is required daily, but only eight or nine rakes of coal are being utilised a day now because of the shortfall in supply.

While the Ballari Thermal Power Station (BTPS), located in Kudatini village in Ballari district, has an installed capacity of 1,700 Megawatt (MW) through its three units, only 430 MW is being generated now. The situation is similar at the Raichur Thermal Power Station (RTPS), located in Shaktinagar in Raichur district. RTPS has an installed capacity of 1,720 MW, although it is currently generating only 460 MW. The Yermarus Thermal Power Station, also located in Raichur district, is generating 700 MW compared with its installed capacity of 1,600 MW.

Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, who returned from a trip to Delhi on October 9, said: “During my Delhi trip I had a discussion on the issue of coal shortage with Union Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi. I have requested him to increase the supply of coal by four rakes.”