MAY 20238With sweltering heat gripping Tamil Nadu, the state's peak power demand crossed 19,000 Megawatt, the highest in recorded history. Tamil Nadu Energy Minister V. Senthil Balaji tweeted that for the first time in the state's history, the maximum power consumption was A 41.82 crore on April 19th. In Megawatt terms, the power demand touched 19,087 MW. This is the first time that the power demand crossed 19,000 MW since records have been maintained for this data. The minister said the demand was met without any power outage and termed this as an achievement by the state government.The state's power demand has been hitting new highs this summer due to rising temperatures. The previous high daily consumption was 41.30 crore units or demand of 18,882 MW on April 18th. The minister said that the government has met the power demand without any interruption. The previous high was 40 crore units on April 10, 2023. According to Rajesh Lakhani, chairman and managing director of Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (Tangedco), the increase in power demand this year is the highest in the past 10 years. The policy note of the Energy department for 2023-24 said that Tamil Nadu has the highest consumption of energy among the South Indian states. As Tamil Nadu is both industrialised and highly urbanised, it has fourth highest peak energy demand in the country. The energy policy note also said that the summer peak demand in the state was expected to rise to the range of 18,300 MW and 18,500 MW. It also predicted a daily energy consumption of 390-395 million units in the period between April and May 2023. In 2022, the daily peak demand was 17, 563 MW and the maximum daily consumption was 388.078 million units on April 29th, 2022. The temperature in many parts of state has touched 40 degree Celsius and the IMD has predicted summer showers between April 21st -22nd. Integrated Power Company Tata Power collaborated with the Coimbatore municipal corporation to set up 20 public electric vehicle charging stations across the textile city, the firm said. With the installation of 20 public EV chargers, the total EV charging stations set up by Tata Power in Tamil Nadu would rise to 116.The four-wheeler charging stations would provide 24x7 charging facility along with maintenance support to electric vehicle owners in Coimbatore and neighbouring cities. "We are pleased to partner with Coimbatore Municipal Corporation which is the second largest corporation in Tamil Nadu to provide optimal EV charging solutions to all EV users in the city and nearby areas", Tata Power head-business development (EV charging) Virendra Goyal said in a statement."Through our association with Coimbatore Municipal Corporation and more such municipal bodies, we strive to make EV adoption in India feasible while making the EV charging stations easily accessible to users", he said. The charging stations would be accessible through Tata Power EZ Charge mobile application which is equipped with locating a charging station, remote vehicle charging monitoring and e-payments. Coimbatore Municipal Corporation Commissioner M Prathap said, "our aim is to accelerate the adoption of EV vehicles in the state and collaboration with Tata Power will provide a seamless charging experience to EV users in Coimbatore". TOP STORIESTATA POWER IS BUILDING 20 EV CHARGING STATIONS IN COIMBATOREENERGY DEMAND IN TAMILNADU CROSSES RECORD 19,000 MW
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