Cabinet clears ₹1.86-lakh-crore renewable transmission and storage plan

India’s Union Cabinet has approved the third phase of the Green Energy Corridor scheme with a total outlay of ₹1,86,405 crore. The plan will strengthen intra-State transmission systems and support the evacuation of up to 135 gigawatts of renewable energy across States and Union Territories. It also includes 50 gigawatt-hours of battery energy storage.

The Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the scheme on Wednesday. The project is targeted for completion by the 2032-33 financial year. Of the total outlay, ₹1,36,378 crore is allocated for intra-State transmission systems and ₹50,000 crore for battery storage.

The scheme includes central financial support of ₹54,082 crore. The storage systems may be located at renewable-energy developer or generator sites, or at other locations important for grid flexibility. They are intended to address intermittency, congestion, peak-hour curtailment and demand during non-solar hours.

The government said the central assistance would help offset intra-State transmission charges and keep electricity costs lower for end users. State transmission utilities will act as overall implementing agencies. Greenfield transmission projects will be implemented through tariff-based competitive bidding.

Brownfield upgrades and network-strengthening works will be carried out on a cost-plus basis, while transmission service providers will participate under a build-own-operate-maintain model. The government linked the scheme to India’s targets of 500 gigawatts of renewable-energy capacity by 2030 and 900 gigawatts of installed non-fossil capacity by 2035. It said the project would support energy security, reduce the carbon footprint and create employment in power, construction, manufacturing, storage, operations and grid management.