AP, TN warned on overdrawing

The Southern Region Load Dispatch Centre has warned Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu of serious consequences if they continued to overdraw power.

Grappling with severe power shortage, both states are overdrawing power from the grid, pushing it into a danger zone.

While Andhra Pradesh received 13 B class messages and one C class message for overdrawing power, Tamil Nadu got 13 C class messages.

A state gets B and C class messages when it overdraws more power than it is allotted and C class message confirms a grid code violation.

With two big states engaged in violation of grid code, the SRLDC has warned that it would consider implementing its own load shedding schedule in both the states. This means that the SRLDC would cut the power depending on the situation.

It is said that the overdrawing of power by AP and Tamil Nadu had pushed the southern grid to the verge of collapse.

This has resulted in fall in grid frequency posing threat of blackout for the entire southern region.

“At present the grid frequency is hovering around 48.66 cycles per second whereas it should not come down below 49.2 cycles,” said a senior APTransco official. “The situation may force SRLDC to cut power at radial feeders.”

APTransco officials have informed the SRLDC that they are cutting power in two to three phases every day as the shortage has hit all-time high of 2,000 MW power.

“We can cut 6,000 MW of power at any given time to save the grid,” said a senior official. “There is no need for SRLDC to use radial feeders as it would further complicate the situation.”

With frequency falling further due to acute shortage in all states except Kerala, the southern grid is preparing to impose fresh restrictions on the unscheduled drawing of power by Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.

“Shortage of power in southern region crossed 55 million units a day,” said an APTransco official. “To save the grid from collapse there is no other go but to restrict the two states.”

Meanwhile, the SRLDC is planning to increase the statutory levels of grid frequency from the present 49.2 to 49.5 cycles creating tremors among the power starved states.