India’s Solar Capacity Crosses 85 GW, Installations Pick Pace

India's Solar Capacity Crosses 85 GW, Installations Pick Pace

India’s total solar energy capacity has now surpassed 85 Gigawatt (GW), latest data from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) said. The ministry said that with the addition of the new solar capacities in June this year, India’s total renewable capacity (excluding large hydro) touched 148 GW.  

The ministry’s monthly progress report said that India added 1,197 MW of new solar capacities in June 2024. A total of 237 MW of new wind capacity was also added during this period. With the latest addition of new capacities India’s total solar capacity touched 85,474 MW while its wind capacity touched 46,656 MW. 

The total installed capacity of solar and wind power in India now stands at 131 GW which is around 88% of the total renewable energy capacity of India (excluding large hydro). 

The pace of additions of new solar and wind energy capacities in the first six months seemed to be faster in 2024 than 2023. In the first six months of 2024, India has added around 14 GW of solar and wind capacities. 

Progress & Expectations 

The country added a total of 12,156 MW of new solar energy capacity in the first six months of 2024. This is higher than the total solar energy capacity of 6,794 MW added by the country in the initial six months of 2023, a comparison of the yearly data of MNRE by Saur Energy revealed.

In the wind sector, India added a total of 1,920 MW of new wind capacity in the first six months of 2024. During the first six months of 2023, India had reported 1,844 MW of new wind energy capacities. 

If the country continues to add new solar and wind capacities this year, it could add around 30 GW of new capacities annually. This comes at a time when the country has planned to add around 500 GW of clean energy from non-fossil fuels (including large hydro) by 2030. 

Indian solar capacity by category by the end of June 2024. Source: MNRE

Regional Disparity 

Notwithstanding the expansion of renewable energy capacities, the growth in solar and wind is mostly seen conspicuously in South India and Western Indian states. In North India only Rajasthan seems to be the trailblazers.

For example Gujarat is now leading in the country with the highest installed capacity of 28405.9 MW. The state with its pro-renewable policies has led to a noticeable growth in solar and wind power. Its remarkable progress in rooftop solar with the highest capacity of 3818 MW has made it the leader in the sector. 

However, the growth is eastern Indian states like Bihar, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh states still seem to be lagging behind.