The Goa government was quick to decide on the purchase of 120 Mega Watts of power from the open market to meet the electricity demands of the industry. A day earlier, the power minister had said that unless power is purchased industry would have to employ generators for their power needs and end up paying Rs 30 a unit. The purchase of power by the government reduces the cost for the industry, though the latter has agreed to bear the additional cost of purchase of power, by paying Rs 1.65 per unit for the excess power procured, which is a big saving when compared with the diesel generated power. This agreement has been reached as otherwise industrial operations would have been severely affected due to the shortage.
This is a temporary measure to meet the increased summer demand from the consumers and will be in place for a limited period. Goa needs a long term plan to meet the shortages of power, and industry has suggested measures such as controlling power leakages and pilferage, which will reduce the intensity of the problem and also reduce the burden on the industry. The Power Minister agreed to the industry proposal to form a task force that comprise experienced senior electrical engineers to help the Department in the process of sustaining and modernising the power distribution system. The task force will have to finds means to garner funds for the State which can be utilised to revamp the power distribution system improving the delivery of power to the consumer.
Goa currently does not generate its own power and depends on the National Grid for all its requirements. It is not in a position to generate power by using fossil fuels or by other conventional methods, but has to consider alternative ways of power generation which includes solar or wind or tidal energy. From these, solar generated power could be the best alternative for the State, primarily since Goa receives direct sunlight for about eight months of the year and even during the four months of the monsoon there are periods of sunlight which can be utilised for generation of power. If solar power generation in these monsoon months is a constraint, then winds and tidal energy can be replacements, as the monsoon does bring strong winds.
Under the proposal of the Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission (JERC) Goa should generate 150 mega watts of power for which the State has in turn proposed that solar power panels be fitted atop government buildings. Little has been done to take it forward and the State still depends on outside sources for its energy requirements. If Goa does begin to generate this, it will meet a fairly good percentage of its power demands, as currently the State’s power needs are 540 MW during the day increasing to 640 MW at peak hours between 6pm and 11pm. Can Goa, therefore, not only reduce transmission losses and pilferages, but can it also meet part of the power demand? The government has to consider this seriously.
Like other countries, India’s long term plans aim at reducing dependence on fossil fuels, so the experiments with renewable and alternative sources of energy, at least as supplements if not alternatives, will increase. The Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy aims to increase the share of clean power that is mainly use of renewable energy sources like bio, wind, hydro, solar, geothermal and tidal so as to supplement fuel-based electricity generation. In this respect, the time for planning should have long ended and Goa should have started acting on meeting the target of generating 150 MW of renewable energy, be it solar or wind. If the State finds it difficult to invest can’t it involve the private sector as a partner? It could be the solution Goa needs.
