India's largest hydropower generator adding 6000 MW capacity to ramp up capacity in times of coal crunch

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Thermal power plants across the country are currently grappling with coal shortage, while India is struggling to meet the spike in power demand, which went up by almost 9 percent. It is expected that as many as twelve states in the country might be on the verge of experiencing an unprecedented power crunch. The hike in the rates of imported coal due to the backdrop of the Russia-Ukraine war is only making matters tougher.

It is expected that hydro and wind will aid in supplementing the increased power demand. However, concerns regarding the water flow have been a worry.

In an interview with CNBC-TV18, AK Singh, CMD, NHPC, set the record straight. He said because of good snowfall, there’s been ample water. As a result, generation has been better as compared to last year.

“This year the snowfall was good due to the winter and we are getting good quantity of water. So, we are getting better than the last year and our machines are already available to take the water for the generation,” he said.

He pointed out that the company is ready to cater to the increased demand for power. In fact, Singh is confident of achieving the highest ever generation in FY23. He highlighted that NHPC has a capacity of 7,000 megawatt (MW) and by FY26, it expects to add 6,000 megawatt to its capacity, he shared.

“By adding Subansiri project, definitely we will be able to achieve the highest ever generation during the current financial year,” said Singh.