Centre orders captive coal power plants to maximise output

The Power Ministry directed more than 100 captive coal-fired power plants with capacities of at least 50 megawatts to operate at maximum capacity from October 1 through year-end.

Invoked under emergency provisions of the Electricity Act, the directive aims to meet a surge in electricity demand driven by El Niño conditions causing low fuel stocks.

Generators belonging to companies like Vedanta, Tata Steel, and Reliance Industries must sell surplus electricity through power exchanges and report weekly to the Central Electricity Authority.