Slamming the Centre for inadequate coal supply against thePSPCL’s agreements with various subsidiaries of the Coal India Ltd (CIL), thePunjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Saturday asked it toimmediately enhance State’s coal supply as per quota to tide over power crisiswith impending power crisis due to fast depleting coalreserves which are likely to exhaust with in next couple of days.
Reviewing the Power situation amid shortage of coal supplyin the state, the Chief Minister said that all the thermal plants are unable togenerate full capacity of power due to insufficient coal receipt.
However, hereiterated his govt’s firm commitment to give power supply for irrigation ofpaddy crop where necessary at the fag end of crop yield. He however, said thatpower cuts on domestic consumers in cities and villages are being imposed toensure sufficient supply to the agriculture sector as well as to maintain griddiscipline.
Earlier, the Chairman-cum-Managing Director A. Venu Prasadapprised the Chief Minister that the thermal plants throughout the country arereeling under coal shortages and coal supplies crisis. Within state,Independent Power Producer (IPP) plants are left with less than two days coali.e. NPL (1.9 days), TSPL (1.3 days), GVK (0.6) days and it is on a decreasingtrend as coal supply by Coal India Ltd. (a GOI undertaking) is not as perrequirements.
PSPCL plants i.e. GGSSTPand GHTP also have just two days of coal stock reduction. Coal to all theseplants is supplied by various coal India subsidiaries as per Fuel SupplyAgreements of these plants with them but presently receipt is much belowrequired level.