Mahagenco has only four days of coal left, raising fears of power crisis before Diwali

Power demand in Maharashtra is rising, and so is the coal shortage. A report of the Central Electricity Authority dated October 29 shows that Mahagenco (Maharashtra State Power Generation Company Limited) has only four days of coal left.

According to the report, Mahagenco has seven projects in Maharashtra, and together they hold stock for just four days. Five of them have fallen into the critical stock category, meaning the situation is described as most precarious at five of the seven locations.

The figures show that projects across the country have 31 per cent of their normative coal stock left. Mahagenco is worse off, with only 17 per cent of its normative stock. Its projects currently hold 5,81,400 tonnes of coal, while the state's power demand is running between 28,000 and 30,000 MW.

For the country as a whole, thermal power projects have enough coal to last eight days. Maharashtra's stock is well below this average, and that is the main cause for concern.

Mahagenco has said that planning is under way in good time to build up stock. The company said that, given the rising demand, a plan to increase coal supply is being worked out in coordination with the Centre, the state and the railway administration.

The problem looks set to worsen because Diwali is only a few days away across the country. Power consumption is somewhat higher during the festival than on normal days. Against this backdrop, there are fears that the coal shortage could trigger a fresh power crisis just before Diwali.

Demand is climbing, stocks are falling and the festival is close. The question now is how quickly coal reaches Mahagenco's projects under the plan drawn up with the Centre, the state and the railways.