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India Power Deficit Deepens Amid Weak Wind And Hydropower Slump
M
Moneycontrol•05-10-2026, 16:56
India Power Deficit Deepens Amid Weak Wind And Hydropower Slump
- •A sharp drop in wind generation and a hydropower slump are worsening India's electricity shortages.
- •Nighttime peak shortages reached 5.8 gigawatts on October 3, representing the second-largest shortage this year.
- •Almost 32 gigawatts of thermal capacity was offline on September 30 due to forced outages and routine maintenance.
- •Experts emphasize the urgent need to rapidly expand energy storage capacity to ensure stable round-the-clock power.
- •Low coal inventories at nearly half of the monitored power plants further compound the ongoing grid strain.
Key Questions Answered
A sharp drop in wind generation compounded a slump in hydropower caused by weak monsoon rains, which together added significant strain to coal plants and widened electricity deficits after sunset.
As of September 30, nearly 32 gigawatts of thermal capacity was offline, with about half of those outages being forced due to routine maintenance deferred from summer. Furthermore, by October 2, almost half of the 191 monitored power plants held less than a quarter of their mandated coal inventories.
Experts like S.R. Narasimhan emphasize that storage capacity needs to expand rapidly. Additionally, the government is actively promoting combinations of solar, wind, and battery systems to reliably meet round-the-clock power demands.
