India's Green Energy Shift: Policy Focus on Grid Integration as Renewable Energy Capacity Crosses 197 GW
SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy | SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
Institutions: Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) | Ministry of Power (MoP)
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) announced that India’s renewable energy (RE) sector is shifting its focus from a decade of rapid capacity addition to establishing system strength, stability, and integration. With RE capacity now exceeding 197 GW (fivefold growth since 2014), the country is entering a phase where the next leap towards the 500 GW non-fossil target by 2030 requires deeper structural reforms rather than mere speed. The current phase involves a “recalibration” to ensure future growth is dispatchable and resilient.
Policy attention is now pivoting to system design, characterized by a dominance of tenders for RE power bundled with energy storage or peak power supply (Hybrid and RTC projects). Crucial supporting reforms include incentivizing domestic manufacturing through the PLI scheme and strategic adjustments to GST structures. Furthermore, the Transmission Plan for 500 GW (₹2.4 lakh crore) is being fast-tracked through initiatives like the Green Energy Corridors.
This policy shift reflects a crucial maturation point in India’s energy transition, prioritizing grid integration and stability over raw capacity numbers, which is essential for national energy security. The recent amendments to CERC General Network Access (GNA) Regulations, 2025, which introduce time-segmented access, are a critical regulatory move to optimize existing transmission assets and fast-track the integration of over 200 GW of potential RE capacity. A key change is the introduction of time-segmented access (e.g., ‘solar-hours’ and ‘non-solar-hours’), which allows for the dynamic sharing of transmission corridors, thereby optimizing grid utilization and helping integrate variable renewable sources.
Relevant Question for Policy Stakeholders: How can India establish robust and bankable market mechanisms (such as Virtual Power Purchase Agreements and ancillary services) to ensure financial certainty for high-cost but high-stability projects like Battery Energy Storage Systems?
Follow the full news here: https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2181433