CHENNAI: Transmission infrastructure, grid integration and repowering of ageing renewable energy assets are key priorities for India's clean energy transition at Green Power 2026 noted the industry leaders who called for urgent reforms to ensure renewable energy growth is matched by adequate distribution and storage capacity.
Speaking at the silver jubilee edition of the Confederation of Indian Industry's (CII) renewable energy conference in Chennai on Tuesday, speakers stressed that the next phase of India's energy transition would depend not just on adding solar and wind capacity but also on strengthening the grid and improving energy management.
Jamshyd N Godrej, Chairman of CII-Godrej Green Business Centre, said one of the biggest challenges facing the country was ensuring that renewable energy generated in one region could reach consumers elsewhere. Calling for efforts to "green the grid", he noted that while solar projects could be set up within two years, transmission infrastructure often took four to five years to develop.
"If Rajasthan is producing so much solar but it is not reaching consumers, it is not only bad for the entrepreneurs but it is really bad for the country, " he said, adding that greater coordination between national, regional and state grids was needed to support renewable energy growth.
Ravichandran Purushothaman, Chairman of CII Southern Region and President of Danfoss India, said energy competitiveness would play a crucial role in the growth of manufacturing and MSMEs. He argued that Tamil Nadu could unlock significant additional renewable energy capacity through repowering ageing wind assets, expanding rooftop solar installations and accelerating solarisation of agricultural pumps. According to him, rooftop solar deployment could potentially unlock an additional 700 MW, while solarisation of agricultural pumps could free up nearly 1,000 MW currently used by the farm sector.
Ramesh Kymal, Chairman of the Renewable Energy Council, CII-Godrej Green Business Centre, said Green Power had evolved into one of India's leading renewable energy platforms over the past 25 years. He noted that India's non-fossil fuel-based power generation capacity had reached 288 GW, including 154 GW of solar power, 56 GW of wind energy, 51 GW of hydro power and 8 GW of nuclear energy.
The conference also highlighted the growing importance of energy storage, decentralised renewable energy systems and industrial decarbonisation as India works towards its target of achieving 500 GW of non-fossil fuel energy capacity by 2030.