GEC III: Bridging geographic and temporal mismatch

India’s renewable-energy sector is now entering a crucial phase of completing the circuit with it integrating States through a robust national grid, even as multi-fold challenges test the ambition.

The Union Cabinet has given its nod to the ₹1.86 lakh crore Green Energy Corridor Phase-III (GEC-III), which is designed to close the geographic and temporal mismatch.

Almost three-fourth or ₹1.36 lakh crore for intra-state transmission systems and ₹50,000 crore for 50 GWh BESS or battery energy storage system (BESS) have been earmarked for GEC-III, whose main aim is enhancing the evacuation of renewable power from generation-rich states and moving it efficiently to utilising centres.

This marks a tectonic shift from generation to reliability.

With total central financial support of ₹54,082 crore, the project also has a viability-gap funding mechanism, which helps attract private capital and enables storage deployment at scale, making GEC-III financially more sustainable and commercially attractive.

The need for strengthening the infrastructure for renewable energy comes in the backdrop of the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) view that Indian electricity demand is expected to grow at an average 6.4% annually through 2030.

India had commissioned 263 GW renewable capacity by January 2026, while national policy is to reach 500 GW by 2030. Plans to integrate more than 500 GW by 2030 and over 600 GW by 2032 have gathered pace.

The Central Electricity Authority’s (CEA) data shows that the renewables contributed 17% of electricity generation in FY2025-26 compared to 14% the previous fiscal, while reports suggest that renewable sources account for more than 50% of India’s installed power capacity.

GEC-III is an answer to the yawning gap between the installed renewable capacity and the actual electricity generation.

Generation to integration

Through GEC-III — designed to evacuate up to 135 GW of renewable power and is targeted for completion by FY2032-33 — a larger share of renewable electricity is expected to reach the grid since production does not necessarily take place at the point of consumption.

Solar and wind projects are largely in resource-rich locales — Rajasthan and Gujarat for solar/wind, parts of southern India for wind and solar, and the Himalayan region for hydro — while electricity demand is across the industrial and urban centres.

Without adequate intra-state and inter-state networks, additional generation can lead to congestion and curtailment and GEC-III is an attempt to build the physical architecture towards this.

Storage changes equation

The 50 GWh of battery storage, which makes Phase III stand apart from the previous phases, seeks to address the renewable energy sector’s nagging intermittency, congestion, peak-hour curtailment and demand during non-solar hours.

Besides, greater deployment of BESS can create demand for battery manufacturing, engineering, procurement and construction services, grid-management technologies and ancillary services.