Power Generation - An Overview
India is the third largest electricity producing nation in the world accounting for almost five per cent of global demand for power. Power generation has grown over 100 fold since independence to 1 624 TWh (excl. captive power generation) in 2022-23. Widespread power shortages (up to 13 % a decade ago) have gradually diminished on a national scale although shortages do exist in some regions. Thermal powerplants generate the bulk of the electricity produced in the country. Nuclear power capacity, currently at 6 780 MWe, is expected to be augmented by 6 700 MW by 2022 in addition to 7 000 MW of newly planned nuclear plants. The power sector has seen vast reforms especially after the passage of the Electricity Act 2003 including the formation of independent regulators like CERC. India has made a commitment at COP21 to increase the renewable energy based power capacity to 40 per cent by 2030.
Power Grid Corp. (PGCIL) operates the largest (132 000 circuit kms as on Nov 30 '16) grid sytems in the world and transmits over half of the total power generated (excl. captive) in India. India's captive power plants generated 68.2 bn kWh of electricity during 2003-04. Large captive power users include the aluminium, petrochemical and iron and steel industrial sectors.
Around 33.7 GW of new power capacity was added to the grid in 2024, out of which 24.5 GW was solar powered capacity. Renewable energy generating capacity increased to 179 GW in May '25 which amounts to approx. 38 % of India's total electricity generating capacity (476 GW - May '25). Total solar power capacity (incl. rooftop and off-grid) leapfrogged to 111 GW by May '25.
Close to 100 % of all the villages spread across India have been electrified although on a household level some states in India still have a low percentage of electrified households.
Power Capacity and Generation
| Type | Capacity (GW) - Nov 2024 | Generation (Billion kWh) 2021-22* |
|---|---|---|
| Thermal (coal, lignite, gas and diesel) | 243.1 | 1 115 |
| Hydro | 47 | 152 |
| Nuclear | 8.2 | 47 |
| Renewables | 158.6 | 65.8 (2015-16) |
| Captive (>1 MW) | 50.3 (Mar 2017) | 166 (2014-15) |
| ¹ Captive (2014-15) includes 130.68 bn KWh steam, 11.52 bn KWh diesel, 24.08 bn KWh gas turbine and 0.15 bn KWh hydro generated power. * Provisional |
||
Power Related Links
- Ministry of Power
- Central Electricity Regulatory Commission
- Central Electricity Authority
- Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd.
- Rural Electrification Corp. Ltd.
- Reliance Energy
- Damodar Valley Corporation
- Power Grid Corp. of India Ltd.
- Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Co. Ltd.
- The Tata Power Co. Ltd.
- CLP Power India Pvt. Ltd.
- Power Finance Corporation Ltd.
- Solar Energy Corp. of India Ltd.
Thermal Power
India had a thermal generating capacity of ca 243 GW in Mar 2024.
| Plant | State | Capacity (MWe¹) | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sundargarh | Orissa | 4,000 | Bid process undergoing |
| Sasan | Madhya Pradesh | 3 960 | Fully commissioned |
| Mundra | Gujarat | 4,000 | Fully commissioned |
| Krishnapatnam | Andhra Pradesh | 4,000 | Stalled |
| Tilaiya | Jharkhand | 4 000 | Stalled |
Hydro Power
India had a total hydro generating capacity of 46.9 GW in Jan '23.
- Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd.
- National Hydroelectric Power Corp. (NHPC)
- Tehri Hydro Development Corporation Ltd.
- North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Ltd.
Nuclear Power
An Overview
Nuclear power generates less than 3 per cent of India's total electricity consumption. NPCIL, a public sector unit, operates 24 reactors at six nuclear plant sites across India. The total nuclear power capacity is 8 080 MWe and approx. 48 billion kWh were generated in 2023-24. Eight reactors with a capacity to generate 6 800 MWe are under construction. A total 15 000 MW of nuclear electricity capacity by 2024 has been planned. BHAVINI is constructing a 500 MWe Fast Breeder Reactor at Kalpakkam. Fast breeder technology uses spent fuel of plutonium and uranium from the Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWR, elsewhere known as CANDU) of the the other NPCIL plants. Uranium is mined by the Uranium Corp. of India Ltd. in Jaduguda, Jharkhand. The Nuclear Fuel Complex at Hyderabad fabricates the required nuclear fuel assemblies for the eventual generation of electricity. Thorium, due to large reserves in India, is also used used as nuclear fuel. New nuclear power plant clusters are plannedin collaboration with potential nuclear vendors such as Areva NP, GE-Hitachi, Westinghouse Electric and Atomstroyexport.
Nuclear Related Links
- Nuclear Power Corp. of India
- Department of Atomic Energy
- BHAVINI (Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Ltd.)
- Atomic Energy Regulatory Board
- Bhabha Atomic Research Center - Trombay (Mumbai)
- Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research - Kalpakkam
- Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre - Kolkata
- Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Limited (BHAVINI) - Kalpakkam
| Plant | State | Capacity (MWe)¹ | Reactors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tarapur | Maharashtra | 1 400 | 4 |
| Rawatbhata (Kota) | Rajasthan | 1 100 | 5 |
| Kalpakkam | Tamil Nadu | 440 | 2 |
| Narora | Uttar Pradesh | 440 | 2 |
| Kakrapar | Gujarat | 1 840 | 4 |
| Kaiga | Karnataka | 880 | 4 |
| Kudamkulam | Tamil Nadu | 2 000 | 2 |
| Nuclear Power Plants Under Construction | |||
| Gorakhpur | Haryana | 1 400 (GHAVP 1 & 2) | 2 |
| Rawatbhata (Kota) | Rajasthan | 1 400 (RAPP 7 & 8) | 2 |
| Kudamkulam | Tamil Nadu | 4 000 (KKNPP 3 to 6) | 4 |
| ¹ Megawatts of electrical output | |||
Wind Power
A small windfarm with four installed turbines with a capacity of about one MW at Frasergunj, along the West Bengal coast.
The gross generating capacity of NRSE (New and Renewable Sources of Energy) sector power facilities was approx 159 GW in Nov '24. India has the fourth largest wind power generating capacity (ca 6.6 % global market share in 2016) in the world with an installed capacity of 48 GW in Nov '24, behind only China, USA and Germany. Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat and Rajasthan have the largest installed wind power capacity in India.
NRSE Related Links
- National Institute of Wind Energy
- Centre for Wind Energy Technology
- Global Wind Energy Council
- Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited
- Indian Wind Energy Association
- Gamesa
- Suzlon Energy Ltd.
- Tata Power Renewable Energy Ltd.
- Vestas India
- Wind World India Ltd.
- Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers Association
- West Bengal Renewable Energy Development Agency (WBREDA)
Other Renewable Sources of Energy (RES)
Other renewable sources of energy include small hydro projects (incl. tidal), solar, biomass gas, Biomass power and urban industrial waster power. The total RES based generating capacity increased to approx. 159 GW in Nov '24 accounting for over one third of India's total electricity generating capacity. Although wind energy holds a lion's share in the production of electricity among renewable sources of energy, bio-based power (agro residues & plantations), bagasse (sugar cane fibre residue) cogeneration and small hydro power plants (up to 25 MW) feed substantial amounts of electricity into the power grid. Solar energy based power projects are being taken up at a rapidly increasing pace with a total generating capacity of approx. 94 GW by Nov '24. India is among the largest solar power markets in the world.