The to-be commissioned 500 MW unit of NTPC Simhadri thermal power project close to Visakhapatnam and 200 MW from Madhucon's Simhapuri project near Nellore and additional power purchases of up to 1,100 MW are likely to bridge the huge surge in power demand during the ensuing summer months in Andhra Pradesh.
The Chairman and Managing Director of AP Transco, Mr Ajay Jain, said the Chief Minister, Mr N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, has requested NTPC to commission the new unit at Simhadri by March 15, so that power could be used during summer months till it is fully stabilised.
The State is banking on another 200 MW from Madhucon's Simhapuri plant. Apart from this, the State has tied up for 1,100 MW of power from various sources to bridge the demand supply gap, he said.
Speaking to newspersons, Mr Jain said generation at NTPC Simhadri is being monitored closely. The State has requested NTPC and the Centre to help increase supplies to ensure optimum generation. He described the coal stock situation at Simhadri as precarious.
Generation from gas-based power plants is about 1,300 MW of the installed capacity of 2,500 MW due to inadequate supply of gas. Barely 52 per cent of the overall gas requirement is being met now.