India’s installed capacity of storage-backed renewable energy (RE) is likely to increase to 25-30 gigawatt (GW) by fiscal 2028 from almost nil in the previous fiscal, accounting for over 20% of the country’s total RE additions over the next three years, reported ET EnergyWorld.
The growth is expected to driven by the central government’s push to make renewable energy more sustainable. Storage-backed RE projects, including firm and dispatchable renewable energy and solar with energy storage, address the intermittency of renewable generation and support grid stability.
These projects accounted for about 25%, or around 11 GW, of the total capacity awarded through tenders by central agencies in calendar year 2024, up from approximately 11% or 2.5 GW, in 2023. Due to high energy requirements, these projects require an average oversizing of about 2.5 times the contracted capacity, resulting in cumulative project pipeline of around 34 GW.
India plans to significantly increase its renewable energy investments, with a projected 83% rise to approximately $16.5 billion in 2024.
As per the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) estimates, by 2029-30, the share of renewable energy generation would increase from 18% to 44%, while that of thermal is expected to reduce from 78% to 52%. The CEA also estimates India’s power requirement to grow to reach 817 GW by 2030.
Present Installed Capacity
With a record annual capacity addition of 29.52 GW, the total installed renewable energy (RE) capacity in the country has reached 220.10 GW as of 31st March 2025, up from 198.75 GW in the previous fiscal, stated the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.
In addition to the installed capacities, India has 169.40 GW of renewable energy projects under implementation and 65.06 GW already tendered. This includes 65.29 GW from emerging solutions such as hybrid systems, round-the-clock (RTC) power, peaking power, and thermal and renewable energy bundling projects. These initiatives represent a strategic shift towards ensuring grid stability and reliable supply from renewable sources.
