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Modi's April 5 blackout call puts power grid on high alert
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SME Times News Bureau | 04 Mar, 2020
Load despatch centres across the
country have been told to be in high level of preparedness to counter
any threat to power grid following sudden drop in demand when the
country switches off electricity at their homes on the call of the Prime
minister this Sunday night.
In letters written to independent
power producers and central and state power transmission and
distribution utilities, everyone to remain at high level of alertness to
ensure smooth and safe operation of the grid before, after and during
the blackout period. It is here that utilities have been asked to keep
relays, capacitors and reactors serviceable so that any eventuality is
handled quickly.
"...It is estimated that in case of switching
off the lighting there will be a sharp 3000 MW load reduction phenomenon
may occur in Uttar Pradesh in a very short duration of time. Reduction
in above mentioned load may also cause a high voltage surge in the UP
Power Grid," UP State Load Despatch Centre wrote to distribution and
transmission utilities emphasising to prepare ahead to ensure smooth
operation of the grid.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday
morning appealed for a 9-minute blackout at 9 p.m. on Sunday, urging
citizens to light a lamp, candle or shine a mobile flashlight to dispel
the darkness spread by the coronavirus.
The call immediately put
the power sector managers across the country in a huddle to quickly
devise a strategy to prevent the April 5 event from creating ground for a
possible grid collapse and resultant blackout throughout the country.
This was first reported by IANS on Friday.
Reacting to challenges
that may pose during the blackout, Tamil Nadu Transmission Corporation
has written to all engineers to be present in office on Sunday between 8
and 10.30 p.m. to handle any emergency. It has also asked staff at the
transmission utility to monitor all capacitor bank for appropriate
operation.
Country's largest power transmission utility PowerGrid
Corporation has also asked all regional transmission utility staff to
remain on high alert during the period of blackout and all station
in-charges and and senior level executives to be present in office.
Going
a step further, UPLDC has also advised state distribution utilities to
resort to load shedding in a staggered manner between 8-9 p.m. to
prevent voltage from building in the grid following a sudden drop in
load during blackout. Also generation from power producing units would
be scheduled below the technical limit to reduce the load before the
blackout.
Moreover, gas and hydro stations would also be asked to
reduce generation. It is easier to switch off and on a hydro and gas
based stations as it can be done in minutes against thermal stations
that need much more time.
An official of PowerGrid Corporation,
which operates the national grid of transmission network, said that
though the situation calls for notice, it is not alarming and the grid
operators are well prepared to handle sudden drop in power demand.
"Actually
considering the need of pan India lockdown due to Covid-19 pandemic,
peak demand in the country is already lower by about 20 per cent. So,
the national and regional load dispatch centres are already grappling
with low demand. A further drop on April 5, should not be a problem that
can't be handled with ease," the official said.
As per power
ministry data, on April 2, 2020, the maximum power demand met in the
country stood at 1,25,817 ME, almost 20 per cent lower than April 2,
2019 figure of 1,68,326 MW.
India's grid is connected as a wide
area synchronous grid nominally running at 50 Hz. The permissible range
of the frequency band is 49.95-50.05 Hz, as per CERC. The Union
Government regulates grid frequency through national and regional load
dispatch centres. States regulate intra-grids through State Load
Despatch Center (SLDC).
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