Speaking to reporters, Karnataka Minister for Energy KJ George on Tuesday, November 21, said the expected average power demand for February, March and April 2024 would be around 15,500 to 16,500 MW. “To cater to the demands of the state, steps have been taken for the procurement of power from the energy market and swapping of power from Punjab (300 MW) and Uttar Pradesh (100-600 MW),” he further added.The minister also said that captive coal mining under private or joint ventures in Chhattisgarh, will be taken up by the state.

KJ George added that, “Increasing the state thermal generation to the maximum level possible and generators on AOH have been brought back into operation. Generation from KPCL thermal stations has been increased to an extent of 3,500 MW. After improving power generation, and taking other needful steps, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah instructed the restoration of 7 hours of power supply to the feeders.”

The minister also said that the state government has done everything to improve power availability to cater to the increased demand due to severe drought and announced that the government of Karnataka has decided to waive off certain outstanding amounts.

According to the minister, the government has added 1,100 MW Hybrid (wind, solar and storage) capacity from Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) to meet the increasing electricity demand. The government has signed an MoU with Tehri Hydro Development Corporation (THDC) to implement more than 2,500 MW of solar, wind, and pumped hydro projects in the state with an investment of Rs 15,000 crore.

George also shared details of the Griha Jyothi free power scheme and said that 1.61 crore customers have registered so far and 1.50 crore are availing benefits. “A total subsidy amount per month ​​​spent is Rupees 780 crore and the total subsidy amount released till date is Rupees 2,900 crore,” he added.