₹68,800 crore high-capacity power corridor for clean energy approved

According to a Business Standard report, India has approved plans for a high-capacity power transmission corridor to transport clean electricity from western production hubs to growing industrial and urban demand centres in the east.

This project is estimated to cost approximately ₹68,800 crore and will take about 6 years to complete. India's national transmission panel approved the project according to meeting minutes released late Tuesday night.

This 1,150-kilovolt (kV) system will be India's highest-voltage power network, allowing transmission of very large quantities of electricity nationwide compared to the existing 765-kV lines. The current 765-kV lines require more transmission corridors and land requirements to carry electricity.

The 1,150-kV network can carry significantly more electricity, moving the same amount of power on fewer lines and less land while also incurring lower transmission losses. India targets 500 gigawatts of non-fossil power generation by the year 2030 from over 300 GW, as it is adding renewable energy at a record pace along with battery storage.

This network is being planned at a time when renewable energy capacity is expanding rapidly in western states like Rajasthan and electricity demand is increasing in eastern industrial hubs like Odisha. The first phase will connect the states of Chhattisgarh, Odisha and West Bengal, and will also link with a 6,000-megawatt high-voltage transmission system carrying renewable power from Rajasthan's Bhadla solar zone.