Singh asks AP govt to make report for replication of its best practises

Amaravati: Appreciating the rapid strides made by Andhra Pradesh in the energy sector, Union Minister of State for Power R K Singh today asked the state to prepare a comprehensive report that could be showcased to other states for replication of the best practises.

State Power Minister K Kala Venkat Rao and Principal Secretary (Energy) Ajay Jain made a presentation to Singh, who was on a day s visit to Vijayawada, on the achievements of the energy sector, particularly in promotion of renewable energy.

A press release from the energy department later said the state planned to introduce electric vehicles, run on solar power, on a pilot basis in Visakhapatnam and Tirupati.

In a presentation to Singh, Jain said AP achieved 100 per cent household electrification three years ahead of the target.

From eight per cent power deficit in June 2014, the state has now registered zero deficit, with the installed capacity going up to 16,612 MW from 8,307 MW in 2014.

Transmission and distribution losses came down to 9.

82 per cent, the lowest in the country, he added.

"We have over-achieved the Renewable Power Purchase Obligation target of 14 per cent and have been generating 22 per cent renewable power," Jain said and sought Procurement-Based Incentives for power distribution companies for exceeding RPPO.

The Union Minister said he would soon sanction an additional 15,000 to 30,000 solar pump sets to the state.

MPs Kambhampati Hari Babu, Gokaraju Ganga Raju and others also attended the meeting.