Last Updated: 6 Jan 2025
FREE: Free 200 units and 50% subsidy for consumption between 201 to 400 units per month[1]
24x7 Power i.e. No Cuts: Load shedding has dropped to the lowest level in last two decades at 0.019%(2021-22) & 0.028%(2022-23) of the total consumption[1:1]
No Hike in Electricity Prices since 2015: Even non-subsidy consumers are getting cheapest rates[1:2]
Inverter Sales in Delhi were DOWN by 70% as of 01 Dec 2019[2]
2014 - Before AAP: 4-5 hours of power cuts were normal during peak summer[3]
¶ 1. Highest Power Load and Still no cuts
- Delhi's electricity consumers grew from 43.01 lakh(2011-12) to 68.51 lakh(2022-23)[1:3]
- State's peak demand in the financial year (FY) 2022-23 was 60% higher (7695 MW) than FY 2010-11 (4,810 MW)[1:4]
Shedding as % of Energy Consumption[4]
| Year | Load Shedding | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| 2014-15 | 0.40% | |
| 2022-23 | 0.028% | 15x Improvement |
¶ 2. Reforms
a. Real-time data Dashboard of the entire network is facilitated for constant access with Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition system (SCADA)[1:5]
b. Minimised Operational Losses[1:6]
| Details | 2013-14 | 2022-23 |
|---|---|---|
| System Availablity | 97.43% | 99.598% |
| Technical and Commercial Losses* | 18%-20% | 6.42% |
*Aggregate Technical and Commercial Losses (AT&C) is the difference between energy units put into the system and the units for which the payment is collected
c. Energy Storage[5]: Used for electricity load management
Probably largest Energy Storage in South Asia, with 10 MW battery energy storage system inaugurated in Aug 2021
¶ 3. Before AAP
a. Discom threat of blackout in 2015[6]
AAP Govt not only did we refuse to give in to these demands, also pushed harder for a CAG audit of their accounts
February 2015
Years of corruption, incentivised inefficiency and large-scale over-reporting of losses
- Distribution companies (discoms) had threatened to push more than half of the city into darkness, citing inability to pay for purchase of power
- Discoms were claiming to be short on cash, even after 5 years of continuous hikes in power tariffs
- Discoms had extracted ₹500 crore from the Delhi government in 2011 under similar circumstances
Aug 2019
Discoms were no longer short on cash, despite Delhi’s lowest power bills in the country
- Regulatory assets (dues owed by the people of Delhi to the discoms) for these discoms have reduced to ₹8,400 crore from ₹11,406 crore in Feb 2015
b. High Purchase Costs[7]
PPAs with local Power plants had 70% higher electricity purchase
-- Average cost of power purchased was Rs. 6 per unit while other states could buy from Rs 1 to Rs 3.2 per unit
References:
https://delhiplanning.delhi.gov.in/sites/default/files/Planning/chapter_11_0.pdf ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
https://www.millenniumpost.in/delhi/delhi-power-cut-electricity-disruptions-down-by-70-but-pinches-inverter-sellers-388710 ↩︎ ↩︎
https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/bses-discoms-blamed-for-power-cuts/article6215725.ece ↩︎
https://delhiplanning.delhi.gov.in/sites/default/files/Planning/ch._11_energy_0.pdf ↩︎
https://www.eqmagpro.com/satyendar-jain-inaugurates-10-mw-battery-energy-storage-system-eq-mag-pro/ ↩︎
https://www.hindustantimes.com/analysis/the-transformative-story-of-delhi-s-power-sector/story-EpBaBzKrHBZRotHtNBD9gK_amp.html ↩︎
https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/stateowned-power-plants-too-pricey/article7307821.ece ↩︎
