India's power sector struggles with critical coal shortages as record heat and weak hydropower output trigger blackouts across households and industrial sectors.
Coal is experiencing a significant demand surge in India as power plants struggle to maintain inventories amidst a supply-demand imbalance. The combination of record-high temperatures, increased electricity consumption, and a decade-low monsoon season—which has severely hampered hydropower output—has forced a heavier reliance on coal-fired generation, leading to localized power shortages.
Inventories are dropping because power plants are consuming coal at an accelerated rate to meet record electricity demand caused by high temperatures and a shortfall in hydropower generation.
The shortage has resulted in power cuts for households and forced operational disruptions for smaller factories, steel mills, and smelters.
India faces widespread power outages as coal inventories at thermal plants drop to critical levels. Surging electricity demand, driven by unseasonably high temperatures and a weak monsoon season, has outpaced supply, forcing power cuts for households and industrial facilities.
Outages are caused by a combination of surging electricity demand due to extreme heat and a significant decline in hydropower output, which has depleted coal inventories at thermal power plants.