(THE NEWSMAN OF INDIA)
Union Power Minister, RK Singh today said “The power sector is witnessing an increased demand which is further expected to go up in the near future. The current consumption of 1200 units per capita is expected to grow 2-3 times at par with the international consumption after each and every individual of the country has access to electricity.”

RK Singh was addressing the Indian Power Stations 2019, an international operation and maintenance conference organised annually by NTPC .

Talking about the issues like dearth of financing available in this sector, Shri RK Singh suggested “measures like pre-payment for consumption of electricity from both discoms and end consumers, privatising distribution companies to make the process more market oriented”.

The 8th edition of the conference was attended by over 500 delegates and it coincides with the synchronisation of NTPC’s flagship Singrauli power station on February 13th1982

Singh said “We need to efficiently use all the energy sources available and devise measures to enhance the storage of energy to meet the constantly growing demand. Simultaneously, on the operations’ front, it is imperative to not postpone any scheduled maintenance of the power plants and not let the power demand dictate the running of the plants.”

He further added that with initiatives being undertaken by the government to augment power generation and distribution in the country like the Saubhagya Scheme and flexibility of power, the government’s directive to fulfil 40% of power requirements through non fossil fuels by 2030 is on track.

The government has already commissioned 98GW of energy requirements of the target 175 GW in the renewable sector. At the same time, there has also been an emergence in the need for companies to focus on safety, environment sustainability, reliability and efficiency he said.

A.K. Bhalla , Union Power Secretary said, “We appreciate the efforts undertaken by NTPC to become a green company with its increasing focus on development of power from solar, wind and other sources of renewable energy. Also, the initiatives undertaken to follow best practices and innovations around fly ash utilisation and water conservation have bolstered the process.

Bhalla further added “It is imperative to check and reduce emissions and ensure consumption of power through efficient means, keeping in line with the commitments of the 2030 Paris Climate Agreement.”

Gurdeep Singh, Chairman and Managing Director, NTPC Limited said, “We endeavour to provide the most efficient form of energy through safer, greener, more reliable and affordable sources by adopting latest technologies and best practices. We have been successful in setting benchmarks in the sector through our operations, which has helped us deliver 24% of the nation’s power requirement through 15% installed capacity. Further, at NTPC, we are open towards creation and sharing of knowledge through learning as well as unlearning not limited to our plants, but also other government organisations and private utility players.”

Prakash Tiwari, Director (Operations), NTPC Limited said, “With rapid growth in renewables, base load stations need to adopt flexibilisation in generating and meeting stringent environment norms. IPS 2019 will address these challenges and evolve best operation & maintenance strategies to deal with them.”

In the conference with the theme of Generating safe, reliable, eco-friendly flexible power delegates from power generating and utility companies both state owned and private sector participated.A total of 11 international papers and 71 domestic papers on issues pertinent to the sector are slated to be presented during the two-day conference being organised at Raipur, Chhattisgarh.

On this occasion an e-book on technological advancement for water treatment by NETRA (NTPC Energy Technology Research Alliance) along with the NTPC Sustainability report and a Compendium of Abstracts ‘Near miss trips, exceptional trips, and modifications done. The conference reinforces the need to deliberate and discuss the issues pertinent to the sector and collectively devise solutions to ensure efficiency of power generation and distribution.

Techno Galaxy exhibition 2019 showcasing the products and technologies from 42 Indian and international manufacturers is also being held on the occasion.