Solar power accounted for 16.9% of the total installed power capacity and 40.1% of the total installed renewable capacity at the end of December 2023. Solar power’s share increased by 0.3% from the last quarter, when it accounted for 39.5% of the total renewable capacity.

India’s renewable energy capacity, including large hydroelectric projects, made up 42% of the country’s cumulative power capacity, with 179.5 GW installed at the end of the calendar year 2023, according to data from the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), and Mercom’s India Solar Project Tracker.

The renewable energy share in the power mix increased marginally from 177.6 GW, representing 41.8% of the overall power capacity mix until the previous quarter.

Large hydro, with a total installed capacity of 46.9 GW, accounted for nearly 11% of the total installed power capacity as of December 2023.

Wind installations in India stood at 44.7 GW, making up 10.5% of the country’s overall installed power capacity.

Biomass and small hydro represented 2.4% and 1.2% of the total installed power capacity as of December 2023, respectively.

Energy from conventional sources

The country’s installed conventional power energy capacity stood at approximately 247.5 GW, making up 58% of all installations at the end of 2023. The capacity declined slightly from 58.2% in the previous quarter.

The electricity generated from thermal sources – includes coal (48.7%), gas (5.9%), nuclear (1.8%), lignite (1.5%), and diesel (0.14%) as the main components.

Last October, the Ministry of Power proposed slashing the Renewable Generation Obligation for coal or lignite-based power generating stations to a minimum of 6-10% from the previous 40%.

In November, Union Minister R.K. Singh announced that the government aims to add another 80 GW of thermal power capacity by 2030-31 since nuclear capacity cannot be added at a rapid pace and renewables alone are not enough to meet India’s surging power demands.