World Energy Outlook 2007

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The efficiency of the power plants expected to be built over the next ten
years will be low by international standards on average (see Chapter 17). The
lock-in effect of these plants will hinder overall efficiency improvements.
The plants built after 2015 are also expected, on average, to be less efficient
than those built in the OECD, despite some being built to world-class
standards, as a result of greater private-sector participation.
The quality of coal used in Indian power stations will continue to depress
efficiency, though increased use of imported coal and coal washing could
moderate this effect.
Historically, Indian coal-fired power stations have suffered from low plant
load factors, low unit availability and low unit efficiencies relative to their
counterparts in OECD countries. Even within the coal-fired sector,
considerable differences in performance are evident between some of the
units run by the State Electricity Boards (SEBs) and those run by the private
sector and NTPC. NTPC's power plants operate at higher capacity factors
and their performance deteriorates less rapidly, demonstrating that good
operational practice and maintenance are essential for improved efficiency.
The performance of the sub-200 MW units, which account for 20% of
coal-fired generating capacity, has been identified by the Ministry of Power
as particularly poor. The poor performance of the coal-fired power stations
can be attributed largely to:
Lower-quality coal supply to the plants, relative to that specified during
design, particularly involving higher ash content.
Design and manufacturing deficiencies, compounded by inadequate
operation and maintenance regimes resulting in prolonged and repetitive
forced outages; together with undue delay in implementing the
renovation and modernisation programme for the ageing fleet.
Inadequate and untimely availability of spare parts, especially for the
Box 18.2: Performance of India's Coal-Fired Power Plants
ageing stock of imported equipment.
Lack of properly trained manpower for the operation and maintenance
of the plant.
The operators' lack of cash, caused by poor financial results, lies behind or
aggravates these problems. The general performance of coal-fired units
could be improved by enforcing a stricter coal quality control regime, in cooperation
with the coal suppliers and the government; expanding the use of
coal washing to lower the average ash content; introducing circulating
fluidised bed combustion (CFBC) which can handle a wide variation of ash
content, volatile matter and moisture content; promoting coal-blending
542 World Energy Outlook 2007 - INDIA’S ENERGY PROSPECTS