The government on Saturday directed all gas-based power plants to operate in May and June amid an anticipated increase in demand during the summer months, invoking a key provision in the Electricity Act. This is the first time that the government is using Section 11 of the Electricity Act, 2003 for gas-based plants. The provision, which allows the government in extraordinary circumstances to ask a power generation company to operate and maintain production in accordance with its directions, has so far been invoked only for power plants using imported coal as fuel. India’s power demand is rising and is expected to peak in the coming months with the India Meteorological Department predicting above-normal maximum temperatures over most parts of the country till June. This is also the time when India will be holding elections. During non-solar hours, when renewable electricity generation falls, peak demand is majorly met by power plants running on coal and lignite. A significant portion of the gas-based power capacity is unutilised due to commercial reasons.
