India expects annual power output to grow at fastest in over a decade

Sudarshan Varadhan
·2-min read
FILE PHOTO: Smoke billows from the cooling towers of a coal-fired power plant in Ahmedabad

By Sudarshan Varadhan

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - India expects power generation to grow 9.3% to 1,900 billion kilowatt hours (kWh) during the fiscal year through March 2025, internal projections by the federal power ministry reviewed by Reuters show, the fastest pace of growth since at least 2011/12.

Searing heatwaves and an uptick in economic activity have resulted in India's electricity generation growing at an average of about 8% annually following the pandemic year of 2020/21, outpacing power demand growth in every major global economy.

India's weather office has forecast more heat-wave days than normal between April and June this year, potentially boosting power use and generation further.

This is expected to boost demand for fossil fuel-fired power, which is projected to grow about 9% and account for over 76% of total output for the second straight year, according to a power ministry document containing the internal projections.

Coal-fired power output is expected to rise 8.9% over the year, outpacing the growth projected for renewable energy output, according to the document. Natural gas-fired electricity generation is seen rising 10.5%, it showed.

India's renewable energy output - including solar, wind, small hydro plants and power from biomass - is expected to grow 8.2% in 2024/25 to 244 billion kWh, its slowest rise in four years. China's wind and solar output, in comparison, grew about 21% in calendar year 2023.

Despite increasing its renewable energy capacity to 143.65 GW, India is still short of a 2022 target of adding 175 GW of renewable energy to its grid. This failure to meet renewable targets has boosted India's dependence on coal and complicated efforts to wean its economy away from carbon.

Some clean energy sources of power generation, however, are expected to pick up this year.

Hydropower output, which recorded its steepest fall in at least 38 years in 2023/24, is expected to grow 10.3% this year, the ministry's projections showed.

India's weather office expects the country to receive above average monsoon rains in 2024. The annual monsoon delivers nearly 70% of India's annual rainfall, and plays a crucial role in recharging reservoirs used to generate electricity.

Nuclear output, which has remained flat for years, is expected to grow by nearly 16% over 2024/24, as existing nuclear plants boosted capacity by bringing new units online, the projections showed.

(Reporting by Sudarshan Varadhan; Editing by Tom Hogue)

  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next

Latest stories

  • How to stay safe during severe storms: What to do during thunderstorms, floods, tornadoes and more

    Experts say to stock up, pay close attention to weather warnings and stay off the roads as increasingly severe weather sweeps the U.S. in the spring.

  • 6 Hybrid Vehicles To Stay Away From Buying

    Not all hybrid cars are created equal. While some models offer excellent fuel efficiency, reliability and performance, others fall short. With so many options, it can be tough to separate the good...

  • Singapore Airlines buys sustainable aviation fuel from Neste

    Singapore Airlines Group (SIA) ordered 1,000 tons of sustainable aviation fuel from refiner Neste, the first supply of such fuel produced in Neste's refinery in the city-state to airlines at Changi Airport, Neste said on Monday. The agreement will see Finland-based Neste blend sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), made from 100% renewable waste and residue raw materials, with conventional fuel and deliver the blended SAF to Changi Airport's fuel hydrant system in the second quarter and then in the fourth quarter of 2024.

  • The undersea nuclear graveyard now more costly than HS2

    A vast subsea nuclear graveyard planned to hold Britain’s burgeoning piles of radioactive waste is set to become the biggest, longest-lasting and most expensive infrastructure project ever undertaken in the UK.

  • When it will get warmer in the UK? Met Office forecasts 25C highs after bank holiday washout

    Bank holiday Monday brought thunderstorms and heavy rain - but proper sunshine may finally be on the way

  • Cats should wear bells to stop them killing birds, says Natural England chair

    Cats should wear bells to stop them killing birds, the chairman of Natural England has said.

  • Death toll rises in Brazil's massive floods

    STORY: Massive flooding caused by heavy rain in Brazil’s southern state of Rio Grande do Sul has pushed the death toll up at least 78 people by the end of Sunday – with nearly 120 thousand people displaced.The death toll in the massive floods that have hit Brazil's southern state of Rio Grande do Sul reached at least 76 people by the end of Sunday- with nearly 120 thousand people displaced.President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and his cabinet arrived in the region on Sunday morning to discuss rescue and reconstruction efforts with local authorities. “I know that we have many state roads that need repair. I want to tell you that I'm not worried because the federal government, through the Ministry of Transportation, will help you recover the state roads.”Volunteers with boats, jet skis or that were even simply swimming have helped in ongoing rescue efforts. The death toll could still drastically increase as over a hundred people were reported missing on Sunday - according to the state civil defense authority.Flooding from the storms over the past few days has affected more than two thirds of the nearly 500 cities in the state, which sits on the border with Uruguay and Argentina.Many residents found refuge in shelters. Among them were Silvia Rodrigues Lima and her baby daughter.“We don't know how our house will be, the things we put so much work into every day to build and buy. And now to arrive with nothing, we have lost everything.” An Instagram video from the army's aviation command showed an officer hitting the roof of the house with a brick to rescue the child and pull him to safety. Reuters blurred the toddler's face to protect his identity.The toddler and his relatives were trapped in the floods in Lajeado, in southern Brazil. Floods have destroyed roads and bridges in several cities, the rain also triggered landslides and the partial collapse of a dam at a small hydroelectric power plant, leaving nearly half a million people without power on Sunday evening.

  • Water firm says supplies being restored amid outage

    A burst pipe on Thursday is continuing to impact Southern Water supplies in East Sussex.

  • ‘Consider having a helmet available’: CNN meteorologist warns of severe weather in these states

    More than 25 million people are under the threat of severe storms from Dallas, Texas to Sioux Falls, South Dakota. CNN Meteorologist Derek Van Dam reports on the latest.

  • VIDEO: Houston Cops Rescue Man and Dogs Trapped in 10 Feet of Water

    Jason Fochtman/Houston Chronicle via GettyAs flooded southeast Texas braces for more rain on Sunday, Houston police have released bodycam video showing members of its marine unit rescuing a man and three dogs.The group was trapped in 10 feet of water in a trailer park close to where the San Jacinto River enters Lake Houston until first responders loaded them onto jetski-type vehicles.High Water Rescue:About noon today, Officer H. Scott with HPD's Marine rescued a man and three dogs who were trap

  • Gusty Winds Whip Through Western Kansas as More Severe Weather Expected

    Gusty winds whipped through Goodland, Kansas, on Sunday, May 5, as weather officials warned of severe weather for Monday.Video posted by the National Weather Service (NWS) Goodland shows strong winds on Sunday evening, which officials said reached up to 54 mph.Severe storms capable of bringing “hail up to baseballs, damaging winds and brief tornadoes” are possible in several counties on Monday, the NWS said. Credit: NWS Goodland via Storyful

  • ‘Why doesn’t anybody care?’ Texas-Mexico border devastated by anti-migrant operation

    Greg Abbott’s strategy to deter immigration isn’t just harming people and costing billions – it’s ruining the Rio Grande’s ecosystem

  • Prehistoric microbes from the Arctic could help make crops drought-proof

    British plant biologists are to work with their European counterparts to determine whether ancient microbes extracted from deep below the Arctic surface can be used to help present-day plant species adapt to climate change.

  • 70 million at risk from dangerous weather: Supercells gather over Plains threatening dangerous weather including tornadoes as hundreds rescued in Texas

    Giant hail and strong winds with possible tornadoes threaten Plains as hundreds of people were rescued due to severe weather in Texas

  • At least 224 people rescued in Texas as rivers flood to Hurricane Harvey levels, with more rain forecasted

    At least 178 people have been rescued from homes and vehicles in Harris County, Texas, an official said Saturday, with more rain expected over the weekend in the wake of strong storms and downpours that damaged homes and triggered evacuations.

  • No letup yet for flood-battered southern Brazil

    The rains may have abated, but floodwaters continued their assault on southern Brazil Monday, with hundreds of municipalities in ruins amid fears that food and drinking water may soon run out.In total, 385 cities, towns and villages have been hit, many of which remain cut off from the world -- without access to drinking water or electricity or any means of calling for help.

  • 4 year old died in Texas flood

    The body of a four-year-old boy was recovered near Fort Worth, after historic flooding in Texas. Rosa Flores has the details.

  • UPDATE 2-Russian drone attack disrupts power supply to parts of Ukraine's Sumy region

    A Russian drone attack cut power to more than 400,000 consumers in parts of Ukraine's northeast region of Sumy, officials said on Monday, after Kyiv said its air defence forces downed 12 attack drones in the region overnight. "Electricity supply has been restored in the affected settlements and parts of the city of Sumy," the region's military administration said on Telegram. Ukraine's air force said that Russia launched 13 attack drones against Ukraine.

  • Southeast Texas sees more than half meter of rain in 5 days

    More than 150 people have been rescued from homes and vehicles in Harris County, Texas, an official said Saturday, with more rain expected over the weekend. CNN’s Rosa Flores reports.

  • Anger mounts as Kenyans left homeless and searching for loved ones swept away in floods

    Weeks of intensely heavy rainfall have torn through swaths of Kenya, killing more than 220 people and forcing thousands from their homes.