Assam Power Distribution Company Limited asked to Plan Power Purchase, Procurement

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: Deficit in RPO compliance and optimum utilization of the available generation capacity were among the subjects discussed by APDCL with the State Advisory Committee (SAC) of Assam Energy Regulatory Commission (AERC) regarding the power scenario of the state. SAC recommended that proper power purchase planning and practical power procurement should be done by APDCL.

The Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) mandates that all electricity distribution licensees should purchase or produce a minimum specified quantity of their requirements from renewable energy sources. In the matter of RPO compliance, the MD of APDCL stated that there has been a deficit in RPO compliance, especially in terms of wind RPO, due to the non-availability of wind power in the region.

In a presentation on the power position of the state, Assam Power Distribution Company Limited (APDCL) informed that since reforms, the peak demand has reached 2540 MW, the maximum demand met is 2413 (in the month of September, 2023), and the average daily consumption is 36.95 million units (MU).

The SAC was informed by APDCL about the present steps taken to meet the demand, which include several short-, medium-, and long-duration contracts in the Ministry of Power’s (MoP) DEEP Portal as well as in Indian Energy Exchange Limited (IEX). The members were also informed regarding future tie ups with upcoming generators such as PTC (Nikacchu, Bhutan), NLC (Ghatampur, UP), APGCL (Lower Kopili), NHPC (Subansiri), SECI, NTPC (Talcher), and APDCL (Solar).

APDCL also informed the SAC on its power purchase planning, which includes long-term planning through power purchase agreements, day-ahead planning, and real-time balancing through power exchange.

SAC members recommended that the break-up and analysis of energy costs be done by APDCL. Further, they said that optimum utilization of the available generation capacity has not been done, for which AI-based technological solutions may be adopted.

SAC members further observed that power has been purchased from the exchange at a high cost during peak, which has been exported at a lower cost, resulting in losses. Thus, SAC members recommended that proper power purchase planning and practical power procurement should be done, which necessitates monitoring with all 3 companies, viz., APDCL, AEGCL, and APGCL.

Also Read: Assam: APDCL launches project to check power distribution loss in state (sentinelassam.com)

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