India Holds Significant Potential in Renewable Energy, Manufacturing and Exports, Says MNRE Secretary at SPDA Annual Meet

The Sustainable Projects Developers Association (SPDA) convened its Annual Meet in New Delhi, bringing together policymakers, industry leaders, and stakeholders to assess the current trajectory of India’s renewable energy sector and outline its next phase of growth. The meeting formed part of SPDA’s ongoing Annual Meet series focused on collaboration, policy dialogue, and sectoral advancement.

Addressing the gathering as Chief Guest, Shri Santosh Kumar Sarangi, IAS, Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), lauded SPDA’s contribution to the renewable energy landscape and emphasised the centrality of clean energy to India’s long-term development and energy security goals.

Sarangi noted that as India progresses toward its 2047 developed nation vision, sustaining economic growth above 7.5% will require significant expansion in manufacturing and electricity-intensive sectors such as AI, data centres, and IoT. In this context, reliable and clean energy will be indispensable.

He highlighted that under the Viksit Bharat mission, renewable energy growth is expected to expand multidimensionally — extending beyond utility-scale projects to distributed renewable energy, green open access frameworks, and emerging prosumer models enabled by digital platforms and the India Energy Stack. With the rise of rooftop solar and storage solutions, peer-to-peer electricity trading could potentially reshape traditional demand patterns.

Sarangi further observed that the evolving demand profile requires solutions beyond conventional solar and wind. Hybrid and storage-integrated renewable projects aligned with demand curves are gaining traction, particularly in recent tenders issued by the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI).

He underlined the need for DISCOMs to transition towards an Electricity-as-a-Service (EaaS) model, comparable to SaaS and infrastructure-based approaches. This shift would involve leveraging digital twin technologies, satellite mapping, and smart asset monitoring to improve operational efficiency and cost optimisation. He also stressed that transmission planning remains critical, especially as renewable capacity is concentrated in select states while load centres are geographically dispersed.

Renewable installations are expected to remain strong, driven by commercial and industrial (C&I) demand, distributed energy systems, and emerging sectors. Sarangi added that India holds significant potential in renewable manufacturing and project exports, particularly in emerging markets.

Speaking at the event, Shri Vineet Mittal, Chairman of SPDA and Chairman of Avaada Group, highlighted the sector’s execution strength and future priorities. He stated that India’s renewable energy sector has transitioned from single-digit megawatt projects to delivering nearly 50 GW of annual capacity additions, reflecting strong policy support, investor confidence, and developer capability.

Mittal noted that the sector currently supports nearly one million jobs and has progressed from heavy import dependence to developing domestic manufacturing capacity in modules and cells. The next phase, he said, must prioritise deeper localisation across the value chain, including balance-of-system components, to enhance supply chain resilience, industrial depth, and long-term energy security.

As India advances toward its 500 GW non-fossil fuel target, Mittal emphasised the need for sustained demand creation, timely power purchase agreement (PPA) signings, and large-scale deployment of hybrid and storage-backed renewable solutions. He added that emerging opportunities in data centres, green hydrogen, and advanced manufacturing position renewable energy as both a climate imperative and a strategic economic driver.

The Annual Meet saw participation from across the renewable energy value chain, including senior representatives from Purvah Green, Ocior, Avaada Energy, ACME, Waaree, Serentica, Azure, Aditya Birla, ESSAR, Sembcorp, Sunsure, RaysPower, and Jindal India, among others. During the event, SPDA elected Shri Sandeep Kashyap, CEO of Purvah Green Power Pvt. Ltd. (RPSG Group), as President of SPDA for a one-year term.

SPDA outlined a strategic roadmap focused on advancing renewable energy deployment, promoting green hydrogen and its derivatives, strengthening policy advocacy, and expanding its presence both domestically and globally. The association reaffirmed its commitment to sustained policy support, manufacturing scale-up, infrastructure readiness, and enhanced government–industry collaboration to position India as a global leader in clean energy deployment and exports.