Gujarat to invest ₹1 lakh crore to build transmission infra – EQ
In Short : Gujarat will invest ₹1 lakh crore to develop its transmission infrastructure. This major investment aims to enhance the state’s energy grid, support the integration of renewable energy sources, and ensure reliable power distribution across the region.
In Detail : Ahmedabad : Gujarat Energy Transmission Corporation (Getco) is set to invest Rs 1 lakh crore over the next eight to 10 years to build additional transmission infrastructure in Gujarat. The decision has been taken to channelize the growing renewable energy capacity in the state towards supply. At present, Gujarat has 11,823 megawatts (MW) of wind power generation capacity in addition to 13,545 MW of solar power generation capacity totalling to about 25,368 MW of installed capacity for renewable energy alone, according to the Union ministry of new and renewable energy.
“The idea behind making hefty investment in transmission infrastructure is to complement the existing power generation infrastructure to meet growing power needs in the state. At present, the state spends an average of Rs 4,000 crore as capital expenditure to develop the infrastructure. As part of the 10-year investment plan, we will be adding 1,000 new substations, of which about 850 will be 66kV, about 150 will be EHVs of 200kV, 400kV and 765kV,” explained Upendra Pande, managing director, Getco.
There are four focal areas in the current investment outlay: Daytime power supply to the agriculture sector by 2027, increased drawing from total transfer capacity (TTC)/ available transfer capacity (TTC), anticipated renewable energy integration of 100 GW by 2030 and the demand of distribution utilities by 2030.
“The implementation of the Kisan Suryoday Yojana to cater to agriculture supply will push peak agriculture demand from 8GW currently to 14 GW,” said a govt source privy to the development.
