India states seek extra power to prevent outages

Multiple Indian states are requesting additional electricity allocations from the federal government to prevent outages as nighttime supply tightens. States including Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and the Delhi Union Territory have sought extra power.

The shortage is driven by a significant decline in hydropower generation, which fell 20% compared to last year following an El Niño-related reduction in rainfall. While coal-fired generation increased by 13.3% in September, it has not been enough to offset the deficit. Power shortages reached 560 million kilowatt-hours in September, the highest level since August 2023.

The situation highlights a structural challenge in India’s energy sector: despite rapid expansion in renewable capacity, a lack of sufficient battery storage makes it difficult to shift surplus daytime solar energy to meet high demand after sunset. The federal government, which typically manages a reserve of 14 to 15 gigawatts, faces difficulty meeting these requests as much of its available power is already allocated.