Punjab’s total thermal generation capacity stood at around 6,580 MW in 2016, including state-owned plants and private independent power producers. (Source: File)Punjab’s dependence on power purchased from private generators and outside the state has come under renewed scrutiny amid the ongoing crisis. The five-hour scheduled power cuts for industry were withdrawn on Monday after a week following protests, even as domestic and rural consumers continued to report unscheduled outages. Here’s why the crisis unfolded.From 6,580 MW to 5,680 MWPunjab’s total thermal generation capacity stood at around 6,580 MW in 2016, including state-owned plants and private independent power producers (IPPs). Today, it is down to about 5,680 MW. The state-owned Guru Nanak Dev Thermal Plant (GNDTP), Bathinda, had a capacity of 460 MW. Its four units, commissioned between 1974 and 1979, were shut on January 1, 2018. At the Guru Gobind Singh Super Thermal Plant, Ropar, two of the original six units were also retired in 2018, reducing its capacity from 1,260 MW to 840 MW. The Guru Hargobind Thermal Plant at Lehra Mohabbat has 920 MW of installed capacity. The 540-MW Guru Amardas Thermal Plant at Goindwal Sahib, commissioned in 2016 as a private plant, was acquired by PSPCL in 2024.Together, Punjab’s state-owned thermal plants now account for around 2,300 MW.Private plants carry a major loadPunjab’s two major private thermal plants — Rajpura and Talwandi Sabo — have a combined capacity of 3,380 MW. Rajpura has 1,400 MW, while Talwandi Sabo has three 660-MW units with both units being commissioned between 2014 and 2016.The result is stark: no new thermal generation capacity has been added in Punjab since 2016. Instead, the state lost 880 MW through the Bathinda closure and retirement of two Ropar units in 2018.Demand has jumped by over 6,000 MWWhile generation capacity stagnated, demand surged. Punjab’s peak demand in 2016 was around 11,000 MW. In July 2026, PSPCL met a record peak demand of 17,452 MW, an increase of more than 6,000 MW in a decade. The mismatch has left Punjab increasingly dependent on purchased power, particularly when its own plants cannot operate at full capacity.Coal shortage exposes Punjab’s vulnerabilityPower Minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond said reduced coal availability had cut Punjab’s generation by around 1,500 MW, affecting both Rajpura and Talwandi Sabo plants. He said the wider coal shortage had affected around 63 GW of generation capacity nationally and sought Centre’s intervention to restore supplies.Story continues below this adPunjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon, however, questioned the government’s explanation, citing earlier claims that the Pachhwara coal mine would provide Punjab long-term coal security and that thermal plants had adequate stocks.Is coal the only problem?PSPCL sources say it is not. According to sources, the state-owned plants at Ropar and Lehra Mohabbat have adequate coal from the Pachhwara mine but are not generating to their full potential because of administrative and technical issues.Private plants, which had maintained generation until the end of August, are now facing coal shortages, sources said. They also pointed to inadequate monitoring and the non-functioning of committees constituted under regulatory directions.Hydel generation is another weak link. The UBDC system, affected by a snag in its feeding canal in August 2025, has not yet been fully restored, according to sources, and is currently operating at only around half its capacity.Story continues below this adAs of Monday, Punjab’s in-house gross generation was around 4,668 MW, including approximately 3,700 MW from thermal plants. With demand nearing 15,000 MW, the shortfall has to be met largely through power purchases.Engineers want capacity added nowThe Punjab State Electricity Board Engineers Association (PSEBEA), in a letter to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday, warned that every shortfall in internal generation during peak demand forces PSPCL to buy power from energy exchanges, often at high prices. The engineers have sought a long-term capacity-addition plan, including implementation of the already approved 3×800 MW Ropar thermal expansion project in the state sector.They have also called for immediate development of the proposed 250 MW solar project at the GNDTP site in Bathinda and stricter action against private thermal plants that fail to maintain mandatory coal stocks.The larger problem is no longer simply a temporary coal shortage. Punjab’s peak demand has grown by more than 6,000 MW in a decade while its thermal capacity has shrunk by 900 MW. The current crisis is exposing the cost of that widening gap.