Report Summary:

The Power Foundation of India, with support of Delhi DISCOMs (BRPL, BYPL and TPDDL), has prepared a need of the hour report titled “Incidence of Electric Bus Charging on DISCOMs' Network and Scope for Optimal Power Purchase”.

This study is the first of its kind to analyse the impact of E-bus charging on Delhi’s peak electricity demand using actual half-hourly operational data. The analysis draws upon detailed feeder-level consumption data from Electric bus depots, Power Purchase cost assessments, extensive consultations with DISCOM officials, the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC), and bus aggregators, as well as site visits to multiple E-bus depots.

As India moves toward its EV30@30 target, 30% electric vehicle adoption by 2030, E-buses are emerging as a key solution to reduce urban pollution. However, the report finds that E-bus charging demand often coincides with the system peak demand of Delhi’s DISCOMs, resulting in the additional procurement of costly short-term power.

Hence, this report offers a pathway for cost optimisation and grid efficiency. By shifting charging schedules to align with the availability of cheaper long-term power and deploying Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) at strategic locations, huge savings in power purchase and network costs may result, which will ultimately optimise consumers’ electricity tariff.

This report not only offers practical, data-driven solutions for Delhi but also serves as a replicable framework for cities across India, such that India can achieve its EV adoption goals while ensuring that the power sector remains cost-effective and resilient.

Report Summary

The Power Foundation of India, in collaboration with Climate Policy Initiative, has prepared a report titled “Tapping the Potential of Agriphotovoltaics in India”.

As India moves steadily toward its renewable energy goals, challenges such as concentrated renewable deployment, land availability, and transmission constraints continue to limit large-scale expansion. In this context, Agriphotovoltaics—the innovative co-location of solar power generation with agricultural activity—emerges as a transformative solution. It not only enables optimal land use and renewable energy deployment but also diversifies farmers’ incomes and promotes rural prosperity.

It is the first-of-its-kind study to model Feed-in Tariffs at varying Capacity Utilisation Factors, taking into account base costs and the costs associated with elevated structures, land lease, and benefits to farmers. The modelled tariffs demonstrate that these systems are not only technically viable but also economically competitive with rooftop and grid-scale solar.

The report recommends a multi-stakeholder policy framework—calling upon the Ministries of Power, New and Renewable Energy, and Agriculture to work together. It proposes recognising Agriphotovoltaics as a renewable energy source, defining it under PM-KUSUM 2.0, including it under RPO mandates, and enabling supportive tariff and land-use policies. Equally critical are timely grid integration, DISCOMs' support to commission projects, targeted financial support, and sustained investment in R&D and knowledge dissemination.

By acting decisively on these fronts, India can mainstream Agriphotovoltaics as a pillar of its low-carbon growth strategy, ensuring food security, empowering farmers, and accelerating a just and inclusive energy transition.

Report Summary

The Power Foundation of India, in collaboration with the India Energy and Climate Centre, has prepared a report titled “Strategic Pathways for Energy Storage in India through 2032”.

This study, through comprehensive grid simulations using PLEXOS modelling, evaluates India’s energy storage requirements, including required capacity, optimal locations, duration, technologies, costs, and policy framework, to meet the country’s growing electricity demand in a least-cost manner for 2030 and 2032. The report has modelled over 30 scenarios using a combination of various parameters, including whether utilities meet their existing RPO targets, whether the national storage goal is met or not, technology costs, and high demand growth, etc.

The study finds that India can meet its 2030 Clean Power Target with over 500 GW of non-fossil capacity, without incurring additional costs, provided that financing and supply chain challenges are addressed. To ensure grid reliability, India will need 61 GW/218 GWh of energy storage by 2030, which increases to 97 GW/362 GWh by 2032, predominantly through Battery storage. Two-hour battery storage will lead till 2027, while four-hour storage will dominate thereafter.

On the policy and regulatory front, the report recommends promoting co-located solar and storage projects at existing as well as upcoming solar plants, expanding viability gap funding to include solar + storage, adopting technology-neutral Energy Storage Obligations across states, strengthening resource adequacy planning to fully value storage, and enabling revenue stacking for multiple market services.
This study aims to guide policymakers, regulators, and industry leaders in accelerating the deployment of storage and building a resilient, flexible, and clean energy future for India.

Synopsis:

This compendium of PFI’s activities showcases regulatory interventions, evidence-based research, and policy advocacy that support India’s energy transition. It also documents major outreach initiatives, consumer awareness campaigns, and conferences & knowledge-sharing events conducted across the sector...

Report Summary

India is at a turning point in its energy journey. The need for a reliable, affordable, and sustainable power sector to fuel India’s ambitions for a 5 trillion economy and Viksit Bharat has never been greater. IIR 2024 is a deep dive into the critical role of India’s power sector in the nation’s energy transition. With a unique blend of academic rigour, industry insights, and policy perspectives, this report is an essential resource for decision-makers, researchers, and businesses shaping India’s energy future.

IIR 2024 report explores the key drivers of the transition, from power generation, transmission and distribution to markets, finance, and governance. It addresses challenges like grid modernisation, financing sustainable energy, emerging technologies, and India’s path to a just low-carbon future while ensuring energy security and affordability.

IIR 2024 brings in global experiences, actionable insights, and future-ready recommendations for policymakers and industry leaders.

Whether you are in government, business, or academia, IIR 2024 is your guide to understanding and navigating India's energy transition....

Article Synopsis

This paper employs time series and panel ARDL methods to investigate the impact of economic globalization and productivity on labour share in India and China at both the aggregated and disaggregated industry levels. The study makes three significant contributions: (1)creating comparable trade data at 27 disaggregated industry levels, (2)exploring whether the change in labour share is due to wage-productivity gap and/or capital income growth, and (3)empirically evaluating the impact of economic integration and productivity on labour share. The study finds that the wage-productivity gap and high growth of capital income are crucial factors for declining labour share in India. The results establish the dominant role of economic integration and capital intensity in explaining labour share...

Article Synopsis

The article highlights how the Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2022, attempts to resolve structural problems in the sector. Once implemented, it will make the sector financially viable and sustainable, foster investments, encourage growth in renewables, and give consumers the choice of the distribution company from which to purchase electricity. It will bring financial discipline and accountability for all parties, including regulators.

Report Synopsis

Power Foundation of India (PFI), in association with BNEF, has published a report titled Financing India’s 2030 Renewables Ambition which has assessed total investments required for India to reach 500GW non-fossil fuel power generation capacity by 2030, along with the existing renewable energy market challenges faced by investors and project developers.

India has been undertaking one of the world’s largest renewable energy expansion programmes in the world and this transition to clean energy is an enormous economic opportunity for the country. The report has drawn upon the experiences from emerging markets and developing economies and has briefly outlined the innovative financing techniques for India to achieve its target by 2030.

If the country is to achieve its renewable energy installation commitment by 2030, an average of USD 27.9 billion will be required annually from 2022 to 2029. Growth in power generation capacity will also require parallel investments in the transmission and distribution grid.

Chapter Synopsis

Given India's coal ecosystem and the energy trilemma it faces along the desired growth trajectory, it is imperative to have a strategy for decarbonisation that defines a short, medium, and long-term approach. This chapter discusses the challenges of navigating the maze of the energy trilemma – Access, Security, and Sustainability – as India aspires to rapidly grow and develop. The chapter also charts out a strategy for a just energy transition taking into consideration the imperatives of the role of coal and fossil fuels, alongside clean energy technologies and demand management, in achieving the growth objectives in a sustainable manner...