India may be running into electricity shortages by next month as power plants have dropped production to critically low levels.
BOOM Television had reported a few days ago that China is facing economic challenges due to energy crisis. It seems India, which is Asia’s third largest economy, may be joining China in this regard as the nation has two days or less of coal supplies left in as many as 63 of her 135 coal-fired power plants.
Coal accounts for almost 70% of India’s electricity generation.
Demand for power has been on the rise in India as businesses gradually recover from a brutal wave of Covid-19 earlier this year.
India’s coal supply has been hit by the monsoon season when heavy rainfall impacts mining and transportation. The current shortage is beyond normal but it is yet to result in any power outage.
According to a ministry statement, Coal India Limited, which produces most of the coal mined in India has been asked to ramp up production.
Analysts believe that if India is not able to fix the coal crunch soon, power sector companies will face the prospect of importing coal at significant costs which will in turn damage the country’s economic recovery effort.
