Captive power generation and its needs

Captive power generation means a power plant set up by an industry or institution mainly for its own use, not primarily to sell to the public grid. Examples: diesel generator sets in factories, a sugar mill's bagasse-fired plant, a cement plant's waste-heat plant, or a hospital's standby generator. Surplus power may be sold to the grid under an agreement.

Needs of captive power generation

1. Unreliable grid supply – load shedding, outages and voltage dips stop production; industries need continuous power (Nepal faced long load shedding until about 2017).
2. Power quality – sensitive processes (cement, steel, pharmaceuticals, data centres, hospitals) need stable voltage and frequency.
3. Remote locations – mines, hydropower construction sites, telecom towers and hotels far from the grid.
4. Use of by-products – bagasse, rice husk, waste heat or process gas can be turned into power cheaply (often as cogeneration).
5. Cost saving – where grid tariff or demand charge is high, own generation can reduce cost.
6. Standby and emergency – hospitals, airports, banks need backup for critical loads.
7. Grid capacity limits – new large loads where transmission or substation capacity is not yet available.

Points to consider