The country’s peak power demand reduced marginally to 267.6 GW on May 22, 2026, while daytime shortage rose to 0.23 GW.
The source-wise mix is as follows:
1. Renewable Energy (RE), including hydro, continued to contribute 34 per cent to the peak demand, while overall RE generation fell by 14 MU, with wind and solar generation falling by 12 MU.
2. Power shortage during daytime rose to 0.23 GW, whereas night-time shortage fell to 1.11 GW, showcasing the generation system at its operational limits.
3. Haryana continued to report the highest energy shortage with 5.06 MU, with Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Assam and Bihar also reporting shortages.
4. Peak demand stayed above 250 GW for approximately 6.5 hours between 11:30am to 5pm, highlighting the impact of sustained heat during the day on the power consumption.
5. The overall capacity outage in coal and nuclear generation rose by 1.8 GW, with a total of 36.2 GW of capacity reporting outage.
6. Average usage of gas-based thermal power rose by 0.1 GW over the day, highlighting the flexing needs of the system to meet demand variations.