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Reading the energy meter

Excerpts from a panel discussion held during the webinar

On power demand

• Powerdemandislikelytogrow5-6%perannumovernextcoupleofyears,drivenbyindustrialdemand
  
• Growthinpeakpowerdemandislikelytopickuppace,reaching~300GWbyfiscal2028.
  
• Resultantly,upcomingcapacities(including25GWofthermalpower)maynotbesufficienttomeetdemand.Also,storagetechnologiesmayneedtoaccelerate.
  

On coal supply

• Supply challenges unlikely in fiscal 2024, given the increase in production.
  
• Expect imported coal blending to go decline to 6% and lower, with improvement in domestic supply
  

Merchant sales and prices

• Merchant prices have softened in the past 3-4 months owing to cooler temperatures in the north. Prices unlikely to peak during the rest of this fiscal.
  
• Gap in peak power demand may drive merchant prices.
  

On discoms

• Tariff hikes are important for the sustenance of the sector. The central government has taken various measures to improve discom health.
  
• Discoms may float medium-term PPAs to overcome the vagaries of the spot market. This will be an opportunity for some of the open thermal capacities.

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