Buoyed by surge in power demand, electricity produced by conventional power plants in Q1FY20 reached 339 billion units (BUs) — a rise of 6.3% year-on-year (y-o-y) — increasing the plant load factors (PLF) of private generation units by 471 basis points to 59.8%. Hydro power plants produced 39.5 BUs in the quarter, 25% more than Q1FY19. Experts have attributed the surge in power demand to poll-related activities in the scorching summer.
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Since electricity cannot be stored, generation is the most robust indicator of consumption trends. Rising utilisation rates is a good news for private power players after a dismal FY19, when their average PLF remained muted at 54.9%, undermining their debt-servicing capabilities.
