Chennai: Tamil Nadu is staring at a peak power shortfall of 6,162 MW in September 2027, with revised projections placing peak evening demand above 24,000 MW across the July-September quarter, the IANS news agency reported on Saturday, October 31. The Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corporation Limited (TNPDCL) placed the updated estimates before the Southern Regional Power Committee's Operational Coordination Committee at its meeting on October 9.
September's evening peak requirement has been revised upward to 24,350 MW, against an earlier estimate of 22,345 MW. With expected availability holding steady at 18,188 MW, the projected shortfall has widened from 4,157 MW to 6,162 MW. July's peak requirement has been raised by 2,910 MW to 24,330 MW and August's by 2,985 MW to 24,300 MW, with evening shortages projected at 5,544 MW in April, 5,592 MW in July and 5,612 MW in August.
Record demand this year, blamed on El Niño
The steep revision reflects an unusual demand pattern this year. Tamil Nadu recorded its highest-ever peak demand of 21,724 MW on July 14 and record daily consumption of 475.477 million units on July 17 — peaks that usually occur in April or May. Officials have attributed the prolonged high-demand period to El Niño, which pushed summer-like conditions beyond the traditional hot months. Maximum demand in September 2026 reached 21,083 MW, up 14.67 per cent from 18,386 MW a year earlier. Beyond peak hours, the state expects an overall energy deficit from March 2027 — projected at 682 million units in March and 2,394 million units in April.
Two tenders cancelled in three days
Procurement difficulties have compounded the outlook. On October 29, TNPDCL cancelled a tender for round-the-clock and peak-hour supplies between November 2026 and January 2027 after bids ranged from Rs 8.50 to Rs 35 per unit. Two days earlier, it scrapped a tender for 1,000 MW of evening-hour supply between November 2026 and May 2027 after quotations of Rs 37 to Rs 41.50 per unit. State Electricity Minister C.T.R. Nirmal Kumar has said the utility will not buy power at such excessive rates and that the state has sufficient power for the next three months. TNPDCL is now banking on a tender opening November 6 for supplies between February and July — 750-1,200 MW at peak hours and 1,250-2,000 MW round-the-clock — along with medium and long-term arrangements and additional generation expected from Udangudi's second 660 MW unit and the two 660 MW units of the Ennore SEZ project. What happens next will turn on the November 6 tender's bids and how quickly new capacity comes online.
Source: IANS via HiIndia