Rains cool Chennai, Tamil Nadu; bring down power demand by 20%

CHENNAI: The intermittent but widespread rains that Chennai received in recent days have brought down the city's peak power demand by 20 per cent to 3,654 MW on Thursday.

On May 16, the maximum temperature in the city was 29.3 degrees Celsius, significantly lower than the normal temperature of 37.4 degrees Celsius. This relief from the sweltering heat resulted in reduced usage of air conditioners at home, which in turn brought down the power demand.

A senior Tangedco official told DT Next that the widespread rain brought down the city’s power demand to 3,654 MW on Thursday from an all-time high demand of 4,590 MW recorded on May 6. The increased usage of air conditioners at homes had been a driving factor behind the unrelenting rise in power demand in the city. It consistently crossed the 4,000-MW mark in May, except on May 12 (3,872 MW), May 15 (3,955 MW), and May 16 (3,645 MW).

The city’s energy consumption also decreased to 82.26 million units from the record high of 97.43 MU on May 3.

Over the past 10 days, Tamil Nadu power demand eased due to rains in various parts of the State. On Thursday, the peak power demand decreased to 16,480 MW from an all-time high of 20,830 MW reported on May 2, which works out to a reduction of 4,350 MW or 20 per cent. The State’s daily energy consumption has also come down to 368 million units on Thursday as against the record consumption of 454.32 MU.

“The State witnessed a steep increase in power demand in April and May due to high temperatures. The rain has reduced AC usage at homes, contributing to the decrease in power demand,” said an official.