India’s Union Minister for Power and New & Renewable Energy, Shri R. K. Singh, has highlighted the importance of electricity as a crucial infrastructure for development. He noted that a developed country cannot develop without sufficient power, and the power shortage in India has decreased from 4.5% in 2014 to less than 1% today.
The country has ensured universal electricity access, connecting 29 million homes in 19 months, which the International Energy Agency called the largest and fastest expansion of energy access in the history of the power sector.
Sri Singh detailed the details of power capacity addition and strengthening of the electricity distribution system, including adding 194 GW of power capacity, with around 107 GW being renewables. He also constructed 193,0000 circuit km of transmission lines, increasing the power transfer capacity from 36 GW to 117 GW today.
He added 3,000 substations, upgraded 4000 substations, and added about 5.5 lakh circuit km of LT lines, 2.5 lakh circuit km of HT lines, and 7.5 lakh transformers.
India has also emerged as a country at the forefront of energy transition, with 187 GW of renewable capacity added and 44% of its capacity from non-fossil-fuel sources by 2030. The Minister informed the industry that the total investments made in the power sector in the last nine years is about 17 lakh crores, and the capacity under construction is worth investment of a further 17.5 lakh crores.
The government has transformed the power sector and made it viable, with AT&C losses reduced from 27% to 15.41% and plans to bring them down further to 10%-11%. He is making rules and ensuring that people follow them, and anyone who violates them will be prosecuted.
India’s power demand is rapidly increasing, with peak demand reaching 243 GW by 2030. This growth is due to the country’s rapid economic growth and the country’s competitiveness in renewable energy. The country plans to add enough capacity to meet this demand, with plans to cross 500 GW of renewable capacity by 2030. The country has 7 million tonnes of green hydrogen manufacturing lined up, making it the most competitive in renewable energy.
India is also adding energy storage capacity, with 35 GW of Pumped Storage Projects and battery storage capacity being constructed. The government is implementing a Production Linked Incentive Scheme for grid-scale storage to further reduce storage prices. Interventions such as custom duties on solar modules and cells and the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers have increased module manufacturing capacity from 20 GW to 50 GW, with 24 GW of polysilicon to module manufacturing capacity expected by 2030.
The Minister emphasizes the need for domestic wind turbine manufacturing of larger capacity and encourages entrepreneurs to enter the field of HVDC Transmission lines. The manufacturing capacity of thermal equipment such as boilers and steam turbines has decreased, but Shri Singh believes this capacity needs to be augmented.
India is leading the change in renewable energy, having achieved both National Clean Energy Levels (NDCs) by 2019, 11 years ahead of the target year of 2030. The country has implemented world-leading energy-saving programs, including the Perform Achieve Trade scheme, LED programme, and STAR rating program. The government has made rules and regulations business-friendly, such as General Network Access, which allows for easy connectivity across the country and the introduction of Green Energy Open Access Rules, ensuring that energy can be bought from anyone.
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