India is undergoing rapid urbanization. Its domestic consumption of electricity is increasing due to variations in temperature, among other things. Additionally, the expansion of solar power has created new opportunities for the power sector. Solar power is produced during the day and thus is not able to satisfy the evening peak demand. For Ratul Puri, Chairman of Hindustan Power, the challenge will be to ensure that during the energy transition, not only an adequate quantity of electricity but also the right timing will be needed.
Importance of Evening Demand in India
According to the IEA, peak electricity demand in India has been growing. In 2017, the peak load in the country was 162 GW and grew to 250 GW in 2024. The IEA also reports that the summer peak load in 2026 was 270 GW. In India, summer peak loads typically occur at 8 p.m. Meeting evening peak demand presents a greater challenge than meeting daytime peak demand. Solar power has the potential to help meet the daytime peak demand, but for the rest of the time, and especially in the evenings, other sources of renewable energy will also have to be taken into account for India’s energy transition.
The way India produces and consumes solar energy is rapidly changing. Solar energy is produced during the day, peaking during the afternoon and declining during the evening. The peak demand for electricity may not occur at the same time as the peak production of solar energy. Beyond sunset, there may be an increased demand for electricity to light homes, power appliances, and provide cooling. Business and industrial activities may also extend beyond the hours of sunset. This may result in peak demand for electricity occurring after the hours of peak production for solar energy. It may be necessary to add flexible resources alongside variable renewable energy capacity to address this mismatch. Ratul Puri’s perspective places greater emphasis on the reliability of variable renewable capacity, rather than on capacity addition alone.
One option to fix the timing issue is energy storage. Excessive electricity generated during solar peak hours sometimes goes to waste. Energy storage systems can capture this electricity to be used later when electricity demand increases. Energy storage is becoming an important part of India’s power system. ETEnergyWorld reported that India’s battery storage capacity reached 9.3 GWh by June 2026 from the addition of 8.2 GWh in the first half of 2026. The main uses of the battery storage were grid balancing, peak management, and integration of renewables. For Ratul Puri, the main advantage of storage is to tie renewable generation to the peak hours of demand. If solar energy is stored and shifted to the peak hours, there is no need to consume solar energy when it is generated.
Ratul Puri on Managing India’s Peak Power Demand Through Flexibility
There are other alternatives to balance the evening peak. For instance, flexible generation can replace traditional generation to respond to the continuing demand and falling renewable output, especially at high temperatures when demand for cooling causes a peak in electricity demand. On 30 June 2026, India’s non-solar hour peak demand was 255.2 GW and the peak supply met was about 252.1 GW, creating a supply gap of about 3 GW in the evening. Some of the supply gap was attributed by the government to the state transmission and distribution network constraints. The above cases show the advantages of a flexible system that can respond to varying energy demand. Ratul Puri’s perspective on India’s power sector is that these advantages can also be achieved through network improvements and greater flexibility in energy generation.
The combination of transmission and storage addresses two sides of the same problem. Transmission moves electricity across different geographical locations while storage moves electricity across different time periods. With respect to increasing renewable energy, a solar power project may generate an excess of electricity during the day, while the demand may occur in the evening in a different location. The combination of transmission and storage with flexible energy generation can help integrate a massive scale of renewable energy into the system, while maintaining the reliability of the system.
The shift in India’s focus from quickly expanding renewable energy capacity to integrating renewable energy into its power system and delivering it to end users will challenge policymakers in several ways. According to the IEA, it is likely that 50% of the additional demand for electricity in India will be satisfied by solar PV by 2030. In Ratul Puri’s perspective on India’s power sector, matching the evening peak will require the coordinated use of flexible generation and storage resources, along with stronger transmission and distribution networks. Flexible demand management will also be needed. Given that solar PV is expected to contribute a large share of India’s electricity in the future, planning for grid peaks will continue to be important. The Indian power system will therefore require greater focus on integrating and delivering solar PV and other renewable energy sources so that electricity is available, flexible and responsive when the system needs it most.
