Ready to meet peak power demand of 270 GW this summer: Govt

India successfully met the peak power demand of 241 GW on Monday with zero peak shortage, Union Power Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has said.

Advertisement

He said there has been no shortage of electricity in the country for two months and India is emerging as an energy surplus nation.

The minister said India's peak power demand touched 241 GW (on June 9) during this summer season, while the last year peak power demand was at a record high of 250 GW on May 30.

"We are prepared to meet 270 GW demand without deficiencies," he said.

Addressing a press conference on completion of 11 years of Modi 3.0 government, the minister said the average electricity supply in rural areas has increased from 12.5 hours (2014) to 22.6 hours (2025), with urban areas reaching 23.4 hours.

Power deficit was 0.1 per cent as of April 2025 in what marks a monumental improvement from the 4.2 per cent shortage experienced in 2013-14, he said. With monsoon hitting Kerala coast on May 24, eight days ahead of schedule, power consumption dipped over 4 per cent to 148.71 billion units in May 2025, compared to the same month a year ago. Power consumption in May 2024 was 155.15 billion units.

The peak day for power demand -- the highest demand for a day -- in May 2025 was recorded at 231 gigawatt, significantly lower than the 250 gigawatt recorded in May 2024, which touched an all-time high.

IMD says India is expected to experience hotter-than-usual temperatures from April to June, with more heatwave days in Central and Eastern India and the Northwestern plains. The minister also said India added its highest-ever power generation capacity of 34 GW during 2024-25, with renewable energy accounting for 29.5 GW. The goal, he said, was 100 percent electrification of all households.

Khattar also announced that in a massive push for energy security and renewable integration, the Ministry of Power has approved a Viability Gap Funding (VGF) scheme for 30 GWh of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), in addition to the 13.2 GWh already underway.

This Rs 5,400 crore scheme aims to attract Rs 33,000 crore in investment, meeting the country's BESS requirement by 2028, he said.

He said the waiver of Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS) charges for storage projects has been extended until 30th June, 2028, benefitting Pumped Storage Projects awarded and Battery Energy Storage Systems commissioned before this date.

This extension is crucial for meeting India's growing storage needs and optimising the utilisation of transmission lines. He said India is set to revolutionise its power transmission with the rollout of an Ultra High Voltage Alternating Current (UHV AC) Transmission System.

Nine 1100 kV lines and ten substations have been identified for development by 2034, with testing facilities under development by the Central Power Research Institute. Investment would be Rs 53,000 crore.