Magazine

Last edition
March-April-2025 2025

Home › Business ›Power Ministry Urges Western States to Ensure Capacity Tie-Ups till FY2035

Power Ministry Urges Western States to Ensure Capacity Tie-Ups till FY2035

The Ministry of Power has urged western states to align with the resource adequacy plan till FY2035 and fast-track prepaid smart meter installations in government premises by August 2025, during a regional conference held in Mumbai.

May 14, 2025. By Mrinmoy Dey

The Ministry of Power has urged western states to ensure necessary capacity tie-ups as per the resource adequacy plan for up to FY2035 and to expedite the installation of pre-paid smart meters in government premises by August 2025.

This was conveyed during the regional conference for the western region states which was held on May 13, 2025 in Mumbai in presence of in presence of Union Power Minister Manohar Lal and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

The meeting was also attended by Shripad Naik, Union Minister of State for Power, and New and Renewable Energy, Ramkrishna alias Sudin Dhavalikar, Minister of Power, Goa, Kanubhai Mohanlal Desai, Minister of Energy, Gujarat, Pradyuman Singh Tomar, Energy Minister, Madhya Pradesh, and Meghana Sakore Bordikar, Minister of State for Energy, Maharashtra.

The meeting also saw the participation of the Union Power Secretary, Secretaries (Power/Energy) of participating States, CMDs of Central and State Power Utilities, and senior officers from the Ministry of Power.

The Power Secretary, Government of India stated that it is also imperative to make necessary arrangements for development of inter-state and intra-state transmission capacities through various financing models available including Tariff Based Competitive Bidding (TBCB), Regulated Tariff Mechanism (RTM), budgetary support or monetisation of existing assets.

He further added that in the wake of recent geopolitical situation, securing the power sector infrastructure, including the transmission grid and distribution systems, is very critical and the states should implement necessary cyber security protocols for the same. In addition, states should also prepare and implement power islanding scheme.

Union Power Minister Manohar Lal underlined the importance of a future-ready, modern, and financially viable power sector to fuel the country's growth. He highlighted the importance of cooperation and coordination between Central and the State Governments in achieving the goal of Viksit Bharat by 2047.

He emphasised that the states should also work on developing necessary storage capacities through Pumped Storage Projects and Battery Energy Storage Systems. He further stressed upon the need to enhance the Nuclear Generation Capacity in the country with the target of 100 GW by 2047. Lal also mentioned about the need to create special zones for green energy to achieve Net Zero emission.

Lal also emphasised that the pre-paid smart meters should be prioritised for installation in Government establishments including Government colonies and should be completed by August 2025. “The Smart meter has huge potential to transform the way consumers interact with utilities using the data analytics based on AI/ML tools,” he said.

Tags:

Resource Adequacy Plan

Power sector review

Prepaid smart meters

Cyber security for power sector