India Increases Coal Usage to Prevent Power Outages Amid Drought

India has increased its use of coal for electricity generation to prevent outages caused by lower hydroelectricity output and a surge in power demand. The country experienced an unusually dry August, resulting in a record-breaking power generation of 162.7 billion kilowatt hours. Coal's share in power output rose to 66.7%, the highest in six years, while hydro power's share dropped to 14.8%. Despite higher coal demand, power plants have reduced imports due to increased production by state-run Coal India. The higher power consumption is attributed to increased electricity use for irrigation, intermittent renewable energy supply, and higher cooling demand. India's peak demand reached a record 243.9 gigawatts, exceeding available capacity by 7.3 GW. The country aims to boost non-fossil capacity to 500 GW by 2030 to meet renewable energy targets.