Grid strains to meet peak daytime power demand; government says conserve

The country’s power grid struggled to fully meet peak daytime electricity demand for the first time during this summer, prompting the government on Friday to urge citizens to use electricity “wisely and judiciously”.The appeal comes amid reports of power cuts from several parts of the country as India recorded a peak daytime shortage of 188 megawatts (MW) for the first time this summer when electricity demand touched a record 270 gigawatts (GW) on Thursday, according to data from the Grid Controller of India (Grid India).The shortfall was roughly equivalent to the peak electricity demand of a state like Manipur. But any slight mismatch in demand and supply can cause extreme strain on the system, leading to fluctuation in grid frequency and can risk grid stability. Power cuts usually occur when demand exceeds supply of electricity and grid operators resort to load shedding. Peak demand figures, whether daily or monthly, are largely statistical reference points, as they reflect the highest load recorded at any moment during a given period on a particular day, often for a brief duration. Maximum temperatures ranged between 40°C and 47°C on Thursday across large parts of northwest, west and central India, as well as adjoining eastern and northern peninsular regions, and southeast coastal India, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said in its bulletin. While power shortages have been a regular feature during the night, daytime supply has so far remained largely stable, aided by abundant solar generation.Story continues below this ad “Although we are prepared to supply electricity as required, due to the intense summer, let us all try to use electricity wisely and judiciously,” the power ministry said in a post on X, adding that electricity demand is rising sharply because of the ongoing heatwave conditions. Night time strain The strain on the power system has been significantly more acute after sunset, when solar generation drops sharply while cooling demand remains elevated. Shortages were reported during night-time peak hours on all four days. On Thursday, night-time electricity demand touched a record 251 GW, with the country facing a shortfall of 2.5 GW, equivalent to the peak demand of a state like Jharkhand. On Wednesday, when the overall peak demand reached 265 GW and night-time demand again hit 251 GW, the grid recorded a shortage of 1.6 GW during night time peak hours. On Tuesday, when daily peak demand touched 260 GW, the night-time shortfall stood at around 698 MW. Similarly, on Monday, when electricity demand reached 257 GW, the night-time shortage was about 1.3 GW.Story continues below this ad Notably, on all four days, the daily peak demand was recorded during the afternoon between 3:40PM and 3:45PM — a period when solar generation remains high and helps support the grid. A similar pattern had emerged in April as well, when night-time power shortages had climbed to as high as 5.4 GW, underscoring the growing challenge of meeting evening demand in an increasingly renewable-heavy power system. Thermal power outages The shortfall has also been exacerbated by outages at thermal power plants, which continue to form the backbone of India’s night-time electricity supply. As of May 20, at least 23 GW of coal- and nuclear-based capacity was under forced outage, according to data from the Central Electricity Authority (CEA). Forced outages refer to unplanned disruptions caused by technical faults, equipment failures, or fuel constraints. Experts maintain this highlights the growing need to expand firm baseload generation alongside large-scale deployment of energy storage systems as renewable energy capacity continues to rise rapidly. Additions to baseload capacity have lagged far behind the pace of renewable energy deployment.Story continues below this ad Between April 2025 and January 2026, India added around 43 GW of renewable energy capacity, while thermal capacity additions stood at only 16.5 GW between April 2023