Now Reading: Storage and transmission are key for India’s energy transition
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Storage and transmission are key for India’s energy transition
At the Mint Sustainability Summit 2026, experts said India's next energy transition phase depends on rapid transmission expansion and large-scale battery storage, according to livemint.com. India's installed renewable capacity is 288.59 GW,…
The Story in Brief
At the Mint Sustainability Summit 2026, experts said India's next energy transition phase depends on rapid transmission expansion and large-scale battery storage, according to livemint.com. India's installed renewable capacity is 288.59 GW, with a 500 GW target by 2030, but the grid lags 40-50 GW behind generation. Separately, millenniumpost.in columnist Sunita Narain noted that on a peak demand day (256 GW), coal still supplied 78-82 percent of night power, stressing the need for grid flexibility and storage. The cost of storage and transmission upgrades remains a key challenge.
The Indian Opinion
The optimism around India's renewable energy push must be tempered with realism. While solar tariffs are low, the grid cannot absorb it without massive storage and transmission upgrades. The claim that coal can be phased out soon ignores that even on record solar days, coal supplies 80% of night demand. The real test is whether policymakers can accelerate transmission clearing and make storage affordable without burdening consumers. Will they reform discom finances first?
Sources (2): livemint.com, millenniumpost.in
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
