The Hindu Business Line : `Per capita power use up at 505 kWh in 5 years'

The present consumption level is far higher than that of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, according to Ms Rachel Chatterjee, CMD of the Andhra Pradesh Transmission Corporation (APTransco).

In a statement, she said the improved situation was due to the strengthening of the transmission and distribution (T&D) network, additional capacity generation, drive to check losses and pumping in investments up to Rs 9,200 crore in the last seven years.

The State was now the third largest power utility in the country with a consumer base of 1.4 crore.

The total installed capacity of electricity in the State at the end of September this year was 9,857 MW as against 6,111 MW in 1994-95. With the Government deciding to invest Rs 7,200 crore in the power sector over the next five years, the quality of power supply to consumers would further improve, she added.

Ms Chatterjee said that in 2001-02, as many as 44,721 million units of energy was generated, making Andhra Pradesh stand second after Maharashtra in the country. The strengthening of the T&D system had enabled power utilities to handle supply of 152 to 160 MUs a day and the losses had been brought down to 29.6 per cent from 38 per cent.

The loss reduction resulted in a saving of Rs 672 crore. APTransco aimed at bringing down the losses further to 25 per cent in the next fiscal.

The progress was achieved in the power sector despite the steep fall in hydel generation due to lowest inflows into reservoirs in 31 years because of the failure of the south-west monsoon over the State and the spurt in demand from the agricultural sector due to severe drought.

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