Wind power installations in India reached 2.07 GW in the financial year (FY) 2019-20, a 31% increase as compared to 1.58 GW in the FY 2018-19.

Wind power represents 10.1% of the total installed power capacity in India as of Q1 2020. The cumulative wind power installations amount to 37.7 GW as of March 2020.

Here is a quick look at the top five states for onshore wind in the country:

Tamil Nadu

The southern state of Tamil Nadu tops the list with ~9.3 GW of cumulative wind installations, representing a 25% share of the total installed capacity in India as of Q1 2020. Since 2016 to 2019, Tamil Nadu has been the leading wind installer in the country.

Gujarat

After Tamil Nadu, the largest market in the country for wind power in Gujarat. As of March 2020, the wind installation in the state accounted for ~7.5 GW, occupying a 20% share of the country’s total installed capacity.

In May 2020, the Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission announced that the tariff for all wind projects in the state will be determined through competitive bidding and removed the practice of price determination through generic tariffs.

Maharashtra

The state of Maharashtra has about 5 GW of wind projects, which is 13% of India’s total installed wind power capacity. The state has struggled with unmet renewable purchase obligations (RPO). To meet its non-solar RPO, the state power distribution company (DISCOM) is seeking the approval of the regulatory commission to procure power from wind projects whose energy purchase agreements (EPAs) have expired with the DISCOM. It has also issued tenders to procure 200 MW and 500 MW of wind power to meet its non-solar RPOs.

Karnataka

The state of Karnataka has ~4.8 GW of wind projects installed, which represents 13% of the country’s total installed wind power capacity.

The Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission recently issued an order stating that the generic tariff for wind power projects will continue to remain ₹3.26 (~$0.04)/kWh as determined in February 2019. It will also be the ceiling tariff for tariff-based reverse bidding for wind projects.

Rajasthan

Rajasthan has approximately 4.3 GW of wind projects installed in the state, accounting for 11.4% share of the total installed capacity as of Q1 2020. The state’s budget announced in July 2019 targeted setting up of 1,426 MW of wind power projects by 2024. The state has also said that it will not entertain new applications for the registration of wind power projects under the renewable energy certification program for the sale of power to DISCOMs at average power purchase price rate.

As reported previously by Mercom, delay in the availability of land, grid curtailment, and issues in timely payments continue to drag on the existing wind pipeline.