Power consumption reached an all-time high in the State on Friday. The total power consumption in the State on Friday was 88.417 mu (million units), as per data from the State Load Dispatch Centre (SLDC), Kalamassery.
Previously, the high was 88.3386 mu recorded on May 23, 2019, the day of counting of votes in the last Parliament elections.
An SLDC official on Saturday said there were chances of power consumption going above the present level in the coming days as the mercury was on the rise. He said temperatures had been ruling high in the past few days, which reflected in the power consumption levels too.
Peak time consumption
Normally, the peak hour consumption was from 7 p.m. to 8.30 pm. Now, the peak time consumption was from 10 p.m. to 12 pm. The increased use of air-conditioners and cooling equipment had resulted in the spike in power consumption.
On Friday, power generated from hydel, thermal, wind farm, and solar power units in the State was 29.6461 mu. About 58.771 mu was imported from outside sources, said officials.
A Kerala State Electricity Board official said the main hydel power station of the Idukki reservoir at Moolamattam generated 12.939 mu on Friday. All six generators were operating.
The official said there was good storage in the reservoir to meet the demands of the summer. The storage in the reservoir on Saturday was 2,356.91 ft, which was 52% of the total storage level.
Climatologist Gopakumar Cholayil said the reason for the rise in temperature was the movement of the sun towards the northern hemisphere and the situation would change with summer rain. The sun would reach the middle of the earth on March 22. The influence of the cloud formation and the nearness of the State to the movement of the sun also resulted in the rise in mercury.
He said absence of clouds during the day resulted in direct sunlight. If there were clouds during daytime, it would lower the temperature and cloudy air during the night would increase the temperature level.
