Fog threatens to suffocate coal supply to PSEB plants

Parvesh Sharma | TNN

Patiala: For a state already facing power crunch, the envelope of fog in the past few days has threatened to suffocate coal supply, pushing all three thermal power plants of Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) to the brink of exhaustion with stocks for less than a week against the norm of 30 days.
“Guru Gobind Singh super thermal power plant in Ropar has around 66,000 lakh metric tonne (LMT) coal which will last for the next three days, Guru Hargobind Singh in Lehra Mohhabat has 72,000 LMT to generate electricity for five days, while Guru Nanak thermal plant, Bathinda, with 42,000 LMT can carry on for the coming five days,” said sources.
Though there have been many delays in the past due to non-payment and other reasons, this time the foggy weather has badly disrupted rail traffic, affecting PSEB’s supply from the mines of Bihar and Chhattisgarh. “The situation has not surfaced all of a sudden, but these plants have been running without 30-day mandatory stock since the rainy season when water entered coal mines in Bihar, delaying supply and its quantity,” said a senior PSEB official who didn’t want to be named.
While PSEB claimed to be imposing power-cuts of four hours, residents alleged it was more. “It’s four hours during daytime and two at night,” said Deepak, a student.
Not willing to assuage fears by enumerating plans on how PSEB planned to overcome the crisis, chairman YS Ratra said, “I am not worried about coal stock and our thermal stations are not going to close.”