India Approves 1,150-kV Power Corridor for Clean Energy

India approves a ₹68,800 crore, 1,150-kV transmission corridor linking western renewable energy hubs with eastern demand centres, with the first phase connecting Chhattisgarh, Odisha and West Bengal.

India has approved plans to develop a high-capacity electricity transmission corridor to transport renewable power from generation centres in the western region to growing industrial and urban demand centres in eastern India. The project, estimated to cost approximately ₹68,800 crore (US$7.34 billion), is expected to take around six years to complete and support the country's expanding clean energy infrastructure.

The proposed transmission system will operate at 1,150 kilovolts (kV), making it India's highest-voltage power network. It is designed to transmit significantly larger volumes of electricity than the existing 765-kV transmission lines. The higher voltage capacity is expected to improve power transfer efficiency, reduce transmission losses and minimise the number of corridors and land requirements needed to transport equivalent amounts of electricity.

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The approval was granted by India's national transmission planning panel, according to meeting minutes released on Tuesday. The project is intended to address the growing need for efficient electricity transmission as renewable energy generation expands across the country and industrial demand increases in several regions.

The first phase will connect Chhattisgarh, Odisha and West Bengal with a 6,000-megawatt high-voltage transmission system carrying renewable electricity from Rajasthan's Bhadla solar region. The corridor will help transfer clean power generated in western India to eastern states, where industrial and urban electricity consumption continues to expand.

Rajasthan has emerged as an important renewable energy generation centre, supported by large-scale solar projects, while Odisha and other eastern states are experiencing increasing electricity demand from industrial activity. Strengthening transmission connectivity between these regions is expected to improve the distribution of renewable electricity and support the integration of additional clean energy capacity into the national grid.

India is expanding its renewable energy generation and battery storage infrastructure as it works towards its target of achieving 500 gigawatts of non-fossil fuel-based power generation capacity by 2030. The country currently has more than 300 GW of non-fossil generation capacity, according to the report.

Existing 765-kV transmission networks would require additional lines and land acquisition to accommodate comparable increases in electricity transfers. The proposed 1,150-kV technology is intended to address these limitations by carrying larger power volumes through fewer transmission lines.

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The project forms part of broader efforts to align electricity transmission infrastructure with renewable energy expansion. As solar and other clean energy installations increase, the availability of high-capacity transmission networks will be important for moving generated electricity to consumption centres. The corridor is expected to strengthen interregional power connectivity and support India's long-term clean energy and electricity distribution objectives.