Wednesday saw season’s highest power demand in Delhi

The season’s highest demand was recorded at 3:34pm on Wednesday, the power department said. On Tuesday, the city’s peak power demand had touched 6,792 MW at 11:53pm.

With temperatures remaining above 40°C, the peak power demand in Delhi broke the season record on Wednesday and touched 6,904 megawatt (MW).

Children take a dip in a pond to get respite from the scorching heat on a hot summer day, at India Gate in New Delhi, Tuesday, June 11, 2019. (PTI photo)

The season’s highest demand was recorded at 3:34pm on Wednesday, the power department said. On Tuesday, the city’s peak power demand had touched 6,792 MW at 11:53pm. Officials from power distribution companies said the power demand in June this year was higher than the corresponding month last year on eight days.

The government and power utilities have predicted that this year, the highest peak demand is expected to cross the 7400-MW mark. Last year, the power demand breached the 7000-MW mark in the city in July, peaking at 7,016 MW. It was the highest power demand Delhi ever recorded.

“Cooling load is the main reason behind the increase in Delhi’s power load. In fact, according to estimates, almost around 50% of Delhi’s power demand in summers is because of the cooling load (air conditioners, coolers and fans). It is a fact that air conditioning can account for 30-50% of a company’s or household’s annual energy costs,” said a BSES spokesperson.

As per the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), increasing the air-conditioner setting by just 1 degree Celsius can save around 6% electricity. This is calculated on the assumption that it is a 1.5 ton 5-star rated split AC, running 10 hours a day for 180 days.