Key Details
The Ministry of Power circulated the National Electricity Data Sharing Framework, 2026 on 22 October, following stakeholder consultations. Adoption is voluntary, whether in full or in part; existing legal requirements to disclose or share data remain unchanged.
How Data Would Be Treated | Access Under the Framework |
|---|---|
Tier 1: Public — such as installed capacity and aggregated renewable-energy statistics | Open access, generally without registration for ordinary viewing or download |
Tier 2: Access Controlled — such as detailed grid studies, feeder-level operational information and certain de-identified smart-meter data | Access after registration and approval, with conditions suited to the dataset’s sensitivity |
National coordination: A proposed National Electricity Data Division (NEDD) within the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) would maintain a National Electricity Data Portal (NEDP), building on the existing National Power Portal. The portal would help users find public datasets and information about data held by participating entities.
Decisions on access: A participating data holder may decide an access request within seven working days and, if approved, provide access within 14 working days of that decision. The framework also sets out a two-level grievance process.
Making datasets findable: After adopting the framework, an entity may publish a catalogue describing its datasets within an indicative 12-month period, with information about public datasets made discoverable through the national portal within 18 months.
Safeguards: Personal information is to be de-identified where required before sharing. The framework provides for controlled access, audit records and cybersecurity testing before new data-hosting infrastructure goes live.
A Common Catalogue Could Make Scattered Data Usable
Electricity data sit across generators, transmission and distribution utilities, load despatch centres, regulators and market bodies. Different definitions, formats and descriptions make it difficult to find and compare information, even where it is already collected.
The framework’s central idea is to describe datasets consistently and reuse existing records rather than require fresh data collection for every request. The proposed NEDP would help users discover data, but it is not intended to hold every participant’s records centrally: data hosting generally remains with the entity that maintains the information. The CEA would develop common data structures and formats.
Access Depends on What the Data Could Reveal
The two tiers recognise that not all electricity data can be opened in the same way. Aggregated figures may support public research and planning. More detailed information about grid operations, individual consumption patterns or assets may require controlled access because disclosure could expose consumers or create operational and security risks.
Participating entities can designate datasets as non-shareable under the framework, subject to any disclosure duties already imposed by law. For shareable controlled data, the framework provides for registration, approval and suitable access conditions. It also envisages secure data environments, where approved users could analyse information without downloading the underlying records.
Uses Extend Beyond the Power Sector
Consistent electricity data could support decisions about electric-vehicle charging locations, building efficiency, climate reporting and green finance. The framework also envisages making eligible, de-identified datasets easier to find for research and AI development. These uses depend on participating institutions providing data that are sufficiently complete, current and comparable.
Policy Relevance
The framework offers a route to better evidence for power-sector planning without requiring indiscriminate disclosure. Its voluntary design is the main delivery test: a national catalogue will be less useful if major utilities and agencies do not participate, or if their dataset descriptions and formats remain inconsistent.
Implementation also has costs. The framework says electricity regulators should consider allowing prudent set-up expenditure through utilities’ regulated revenue requirements, while some operating costs may be recovered through access fees. The practical balance will be to make useful data accessible without placing unreasonable costs on users or weakening privacy and grid-security protections.
Follow the Full Framework Here: National Electricity Data Sharing Framework, 2026 — Ministry of Power