Heat spurs power demand in state to record 24,111MW

Ahmedabad: With temperatures in Gujarat surpassing 40C due to the heatwave-like conditions. the state's peak power demand has reached unprecedented levels. On Monday, May 6, as temperatures exceeded 41°C alongside heightened humidity, the peak power demand surged to 24,111MW, as reported by the State Load Despatch Centre (SLDC). This marks the highest peak power consumption recorded during the summer of 2024 in Gujarat.
The peak electricity demand in Gujarat last year was recorded in Sept.According to SLDC data, Gujarat saw a record demand of 24,540MW.

The state felt the heat on Tuesday with Ahmedabad witnessing a high of 43.3C and Kutch recording 43.5C — marking one of the hottest days of the season. This also propelled power demand, albeit not till the peak. According to SLDC, peak power demand in Gujarat settled at 22,203MW on Tuesday.
The reason attributed to the surge was that it was polling day and the declaration of a public holiday ensured that several factories, offices and commercial establishments were closed.
“The industrial consumption remained as good as nil due to the polling day on Tuesday. Moreover, a majority of educational institutions, private and govt offices remained closed for operations due to election day. As a result, overall demand declined despite the high temperatures,” a source privy to the development said.
Gujarat’s peak power demand has increased primarily due to rising electricity consumption in the domestic and agricultural sectors.
While industry remains the largest consumer of electricity in the state, agriculture and domestic usage follow closely behind. A senior official of the Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd said, “We have seen increased demand due to higher temperatures but there is no issue of power supply. Solar rooftop adoption across the state has helped us a lot. After May 15 wind power generation will increase significantly and we believe that it will reduce our dependence on gas-based plants. We buy power from the exchange whenever we get cheaper power. Demand is expected to increase in the coming days and we are fully prepared to meet the demand.”
The peak power demand reached 17,865MW in April 2019. Over the course of five years, this demand has shot up by nearly 6,000MW, highlighting the significant increase in electricity consumption across various sectors.
Sources have also pointed out that solar power generation is playing a crucial role in meeting this heightened demand as it becomes an increasingly important part of Gujarat’s energy mix.