India curtails record solar output as summer power demand outpaces grid capacity

During the peak of summer, India’s electricity demand spiked, especially for air-conditioning and groundwater pumping, yet grid operators ordered solar farms to reduce output, resulting in almost 11 TWh of curtailed generation over the last 15 months—enough for about 10 million households. Analysts point to a shortage of transmission capacity, the difficulty of quickly throttling coal plants, and a lack of large-scale storage as the main constraints.

The concentration of solar farms in Gujarat and Rajasthan creates bottlenecks on limited transmission corridors, while battery storage remains only a few gigawatts against a target of dozens by the early 2030s. Industry leaders such as Vinay Pabba and Ankit Mittal warn that without rapid deployment of storage and grid upgrades, clean power will continue to be wasted. The government’s goal of 500 GW of non-fossil capacity by 2030 and 70 % of total capacity by 2036 hinges on solving these infrastructure gaps. Experts stress that building transmission lines takes years, whereas batteries can be installed more quickly, offering a near-term remedy.