The Central Electricity Authority (CEA), under the Ministry of Power, has extended the deadline for submitting suggestions and comments on the draft Amendment-II to the Manual on Transmission Planning Criteria, 2023. In an official notice issued on June 9, 2026, the authority announced that stakeholders and members of the public can now submit their feedback until June 21, 2026. The earlier deadline was June 8, 2026, as specified in a notice released on May 19, 2026.
The extension comes after several power sector utilities requested additional time to study the proposed amendments and provide detailed comments. The CEA accepted these requests and granted an extended period to ensure broader stakeholder participation in the consultation process.
The Manual on Transmission Planning Criteria, 2023, which came into force on April 1, 2023, serves as a key framework for planning India’s power transmission network. It defines technical standards, grid security requirements, and planning principles for the country’s electricity infrastructure. The document was first revised through Amendment-I on January 8, 2025, which added a dedicated chapter on transmission planning procedures.
The draft Amendment-II proposes several important changes aimed at supporting future grid expansion and emerging technologies. One of the major highlights is the introduction of planning criteria and technical standards for a new 1150 kV high-voltage alternating current (AC) transmission system. The amendment also updates conductor parameters, capacity factors, and generic modeling requirements for modern power sector assets.
The proposed changes include technical guidelines for integrating renewable energy and advanced grid technologies. These cover solar parks, wind power projects, Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), and Static Synchronous Compensators (STATCOMs), ensuring that the transmission network remains capable of handling evolving power generation and storage technologies.
The amendment further strengthens reliability requirements for critical infrastructure. High-priority facilities such as metro rail systems, railway networks, airports, petroleum refineries, hospitals, and data centers will be required to have 100 percent power supply redundancy wherever feasible. These facilities must be connected to two independent power sources to improve reliability and reduce the risk of supply disruptions.
In addition, the draft revises normal and emergency voltage limits and sets new transient stability requirements. It specifies that the transmission system should be able to withstand severe three-phase-to-ground faults on the proposed 1150 kV lines if cleared within 100 milliseconds, without causing loss of synchronism or major power disturbances.
The document also introduces safety measures for future substations. Short-circuit levels on new substation buses will be limited to 80 percent of the equipment’s rated breaking capacity, maintaining a 20 percent safety margin for future network growth. The amendment standardizes transformer capacity at 12,600 MVA for 1150 kV substations and limits switching-related voltage variations to 5 percent.
The CEA has urged utilities, developers, industry experts, and the public to review the draft and submit their comments to the Chief Engineer of the Power System Planning & Appraisal Division-II by June 21, 2026. The feedback received will help shape the final transmission planning criteria that will guide the development of India’s future extra-high-voltage power network.
Discover more from SolarQuarter
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
