The India growth story runs the risk of being derailed if urgent steps are not initiated now to wipe out the peak electricity demand deficit of 13% and energy shortage of 6%. There is urgent need for concerted action on building adequate capacity in terms of manpower, material and resources. A study by Ficci-Crisil entitled ?Indian Power Sector: Holistic Capacity Building?, presented at the recent India Electricity 2008 conference, notes that close to 2 million trained personnel would be required in electricity sector during the 11th and 12 Plan periods.
The technical wing of the ministry of power?the Central Electricity Authority (CEA)?has estimated that India would require an addition of at least 161 gw of generation capacity during the 11th and 12th Plan periods at an estimated cost of over Rs 4,10,000 crore ($95 billion). These requirements do not include the generation additions of around 40 gw, which slipped during the 10th Plan.
In the past, these slippages were largely due to the lack of an adequate policy and regulatory framework, which have been overcome to a large extent by the enactment of the Electricity Act, 2003, along with various rules and regulations under the Act. Generation targets will require commensurate capacities downstream (transmission & distribution, including rural electrification) as well as upstream (fuels).
Meeting manpower requirements of this magnitude, the study notes, would require the creation of more Industrial Training Institutes, other specialised training institutes and carrying out nationwide specialised training programmes for generation and transmission & distribution, including the various training programmes on IT-enabled applications.
The Ficci-Crisil infrastructure advisory spotlights the need to augment equipment, construction and erection capacity as well, which provides investment opportunity to private players. Existing capacities in this area also need to be enhanced along with the implementation of proposed JVs between major power players and equipment & construction industry players.
The study states that fuel will be a critical source for meeting the generation targets and, therefore, will require a holistic capacity building effort for efficient coal mining in India as well as for exploring other sources of generation such as gas-based generation, hydro and renewable energy sources.