In a move to strengthen short-term electricity availability amid global uncertainty, the Ministry of Power said India will postpone maintenance shutdowns at thermal power plants and operationalise additional capacity to ensure around 10,000 megawatt (MW) of extra supply during peak summer demand.  

Piyush Singh, Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Power, said power plants must undergo an annual shutdown for maintenance and repair of wear-and-tear in the machinery, however this has been postponed to make available electricity to meet peak demand. He said this will help augment 10,000 MW of generation, which will more than compensate for the 8,000 MW of generating capacity lost because of disruption in liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies due to West Asia conflict.

Additionally, he said coal-based power plants that rely on imports are being fully operationalised and adequate coal stocks are being maintained at thermal stations to address near-term supply pressures. He said India's electricity infrastructure remains robust, well-diversified and adequately positioned to meet demand, and added that the country's installed capacity has surpassed 531 gigawatts. Non-fossil sources now account for more than 50 per cent of total capacity, backed by coal, hydro, nuclear and renewables.    

He further said 22,361 MW of electricity generation capacity will be added in the next three months. This includes 3,500 MW of thermal power capacity addition, 10,000 MW of solar, 2,400 MW of wind, 1,900 MW of battery storage, 3,461 MW of hybrid (solar and wind), 750 MW of hydro and 250 MW of pumped storage projects. He said a strong transmission backbone of around 5 lakh circuit kilometres and over 120 GW of inter-regional transfer capability ensures reliable power flows across regions.