Indian heat pushes power demand to record highReuters, NEW DELHIIndia’s electricity demand touched a record high last month as its northern states reeled under the hottest pre-summer months in decades, with a surge in the use of air-conditioning triggering the worst power crisis in more than six years. Power demand grew 13.2 percent to 135.4 billion kilowatt-hours, as the electricity requirement in the north grew between 16 percent and 75 percent, government data showed. The unprecedented electricity use resulted in widespread power cuts last month, as utilities scrambled to manage demand as coal supplies dwindled. Power supply fell short of demand by 2.41 billion units, or 1.8 percent, the worst since October 2015. Demand for power in Delhi rose 42 percent last month, with northern states such as Punjab and Rajasthan seeing electricity demand grow 36 percent and 28 percent respectively, the data showed.
