Vijayawada: With soaring mercury levels and daytime temperatures hitting 40 degrees in several parts of the state, household power consumption drastically increased, resulting in a sharp spike in unrestricted peak demand, which reached a record high of 12,251 megawatts on June 7. Subsequently, the required energy supply saw a significant rise from an average of 190 million units per day during the last week of May to a record high of 246.49 million units on June 6. The average energy required stood between 200 to 240 million units during the first ten days of June, given the persistent heatwave that led to a surge in power consumption in the state.At the same time, the unrestricted peak demand across the state, which was around 9,100 megawatts to 9,500 megawatts in the last week of May, surged past 10,000 megawatts and reached a high of 12,251 megawatts on June 7.It is believed that power consumption in the last week of May was relatively lower as the temperatures stayed below 35 degrees Celsius, coupled with regular showers that provided relief and respite from the heatwave. However, since the start of June, the heatwave gripped the state, and mercury levels soared to 40 degrees, leading to a sharp spike in the usage of air conditioners and other cooling appliances, which subsequently led to the rise in power consumption in the state.Despite a jump in power consumption, the govt managed to provide an uninterrupted power supply without any power cuts to consumers in the state.According to the data gathered from the APTRANSCO official website, non-conventional energy resources (NCEs) such as solar and wind energy contributed approximately 1,637 million units of power out of 3,284 million units supplied between May 26 and June 9 in the state. During the same period, the power supply through Genco Thermal stood at 1,165 million units, while it was 82.8 million units through Genco Hydel.
