Comments - Draft National Electricity Plan Vol.I: Generation

Ember provides comments on India's draft National Electricity Plan (Vol.I: Generation), raising concerns about potential shortfalls in meeting 2030 renewable energy targets and the risk of overestimating peak demand, which could lead to excessive coal capacity investment.

• The draft Plan's projections appear inconsistent with India's previous 2030 targets of 450 GW of renewable energy (excluding large hydro) and 500 GW of non-fossil capacity. Interpolating the draft Plan's targets to FY 2030 suggests potential shortfalls of approximately 17 GW for non-fossil capacity and 58 GW for renewable energy.
• The draft Plan projects peak demand to reach 363 GW in FY 2032, up from 203 GW in FY 2022. This implies an average annual growth rate of 6%, which exceeds the 4.6% average annual growth rate observed over the previous 10 years.
• Overestimating peak demand may lead to an overestimation of required coal power capacity by FY 2032. For instance, if peak demand grew at 5% annually instead of 6%, reaching 331 GW in FY 2032, the required coal capacity would be approximately 211 GW—roughly 38 GW lower than the 249 GW projected in the draft Plan.
• Ember suggests that approximately 27 GW of proposed coal power plants currently in pre-construction stages in India may already be surplus to requirements and could become "zombie plants."
• To manage uncertainty in electricity demand, Ember recommends periodic stock-taking and revising coal capacity targets every few years, including a temporary stay on new coal power plant proposals beyond those already under construction.

APA

Lolla, A. (2022). Comments - Draft National Electricity Plan Vol.I: Generation. Ember. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/Ember-comments-on-Indias-draft-NEP.pdf

Chicago

Lolla, Aditya. Comments - Draft National Electricity Plan Vol.I: Generation. Ember, 2022. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/Ember-comments-on-Indias-draft-NEP.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Lolla |first1=Aditya |title=Comments - Draft National Electricity Plan Vol.I: Generation |publisher=Ember |date=6 December 2022 |url=https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/Ember-comments-on-Indias-draft-NEP.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{lolla2022comments, author = {Lolla, Aditya}, title = {{Comments - Draft National Electricity Plan Vol.I: Generation}}, publisher = {Ember}, year = {2022}, month = dec, url = {https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/Ember-comments-on-Indias-draft-NEP.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }