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New Delhi: The Union government is likely to provide assistance worth about ₹ 22,400 crore to states for development of intra-state transmission systems under the third phase of the Green Energy Corridor, said two people in the know of the development. GEC-III was proposed in the Union budget for FY26. The overall cost for the third phase is estimated around ₹ 56,000 crore and the Centre would provide 40% of the cost, the two people mentioned above said.
The major states to be covered under the scheme include Gujarat, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh. Most of the projects under the third phase are expected to be in Gujarat, with the state projected to work on transmission projects worth over ₹ 29,000 crore, followed by Rajasthan with projects worth over ₹ 9,000 crore. "The scheme was recently discussed in a recent meeting by the new and renewable energy ministry with stakeholders and the focus is on accelerated development of the transmission network to cater to the targeted 500 GW non-fossil capacity and achieve energy transition," said one of the two people mentioned.
Also read | India, Singapore eyeing green energy corridor, says Singapore president The scheme is being worked on and states are expected to give their inputs by the end of this month. The focus on transmission network gains momentum as the 2030 deadline for installing 500 GW of non-fossil capacity nears. With intermittent nature of solar and wind power, grid connectivity needs to be strengthened for stable operations.
Phase-1 and 2 of the scheme are different stages of completion and are being implemented across 10 states with central financial assistance of up to 40% of the project cost. A spokesperson of the union ministry of new and renewable energy said: "The phase III aims to strengthen transmission infrastructure for integrating renewable energy. The scheme will include intra-state systems to support RE(renewable energy)-rich states and states with emerging RE markets.
MNRE will provide support to offset high costs, reduce tariffs, and attract private investment." The spokesperson added that it will enable green energy integration, reduce transmission bottlenecks, and ensure affordable, sustainable power for India’s clean energy transition. Read this | India's green energy push spawns a unique resale market for grid connectivity The green energy corridor project started in 2015 comprising both Inter State Transmission System (ISTS) and Intra State Transmission System (InSTS) along with the setting up of renewable energy management centres (REMC) and the control infrastructure storage systems.
The third phase would primarily focus on intra-state transmission systems. Apprising the parliamentary panel on energy on the progress of the projects under the ongoing green energy corridor phases, the ministry said: “Major activities/projects proposed to be undertaken are completion of phase-I of the GEC, completion of tendering process and award of works for InSTS and ISTS in GEC-II. Further, it is anticipated that phase-III of the GEC will be rolled out during the year 2025-26.
” It however noted that the InSTS GEC-I scheme has been delayed due to various reasons including right of way (RoW) issues, delay in issuing tenders because of delay in substation land acquisition, delay in award of works due to low bid turnout in various projects which resulted in re-tendering several times, court cases, forest clearances, Great Indian Bustard (GIB)- related clearance among others. Also read | Centre directs energy PSUs to list green energy business The standing committee on energy in its report on demand for grants of MNRE noted that as transmission infrastructure is critical for timely evacuation of power from renewable energy projects, the ministry needs to closely coordinate with state governments as well as other stakeholders to resolve the issues being faced..
