Authors : Labanya Prakash Jena | Prasad Ashok Thakur
India must reassess its solar potential to unlock investment, drive green growth, and lead global clean energy transitions through data-driven insights.
Image Source: MONEY SHARMA/Staff Getty Images
Of India’s total renewable energy capacity of 237.5 GW by June 2025, India’s total installed solar power capacity was 110.9 GW. Since solar will be the dominant energy source, India will continue to harness this clean energy technology to achieve energy independence and net-zero carbon emissions by 2070. These aspirations entail continuous investment and scale-up in the country’s solar energy sector to meet the country’s growing energy demands.
The country must reassess its solar energy potential to harness this abundant resource judiciously, as a first step in this direction. According to 2014 estimates conducted by the National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE), India’s total solar energy potential stands at 748 gigawatt peak (GWp). NISE has reportedly based this estimation on the Wasteland Atlas of India 2010 data. As per the data shared by the Department of Land Resources, Ministry of Rural Development, it was assumed that solar energy generation can be harnessed using 3 percent of the country’s wasteland. The average module efficiency was considered to be about 15 percent. Additionally, the potential of the solar rooftop power plant was calculated using the available urbanisation data from India’s 2011 Census data, while assessing the rooftop area available for different categories of buildings.
The potential of the solar rooftop power plant was calculated using the available urbanisation data from India’s 2011 Census data, while assessing the rooftop area available for different categories of buildings.
This solar energy value chain transformation is characterised by higher energy output, cost effectiveness, lower environmental impact, and faster manufacturing timelines. The country’s land use pattern is undergoing a massive churn based on megatrends such as its youth’s evolving aspirations, urbanisation, industrialisation, and increased digital consumption.
A recalibrated approach towards understanding the true potential of solar energy must be undertaken. Based on learnings accumulated from gigawatt-scale solar deployment projects across geographies and advanced remote sensing tools, the country’s solar potential can be re-quantified. A bouquet of technology-enabled, data-rich, and customised parameters can be factored into a thorough re-evaluation exercise while upgrading the country’s solar potential based on present-day scientific understanding. A recent paper by the Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) suggests that ground-mounted potential can be 4000+ GW, and floating solar potential can be ~100 GW.
Given the rapid evolution of technologies and global benchmarks, modern methodologies for assessing India’s solar potential must be periodically updated and released. Currently, India has a solar installed capacity of ~111 GW compared to China’s of ~1,080GW and the US’ of ~248 GW of cumulative solar installed capacity. Parameters such as—solar irradiance, land’s gradient, climate’s impact on landforms, physical proximity to electricity substation, and availability of feed-in transmission capacity at substations—can be incorporated while assessing the potential of ground-mounted solar. For this, databases from the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) National Remote Sensing Centre, Global Solar Atlas, Solar Radiation Database by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (United States), and the Central Electricity Authority’s India Transmission Portal can be leveraged.
India has a solar installed capacity of ~111 GW compared to China’s of ~1,080GW and the US’ of ~248 GW of cumulative solar installed capacity.
A similar upgrade in methodologies can be made in assessing the capability of floating solar photovoltaic (FSPV). According to empirical evidence, land parcels with slopes less than or equal to 5° south, south-east or south-west can be considered favourable for ground-mounted solar panels. Additionally, as with the 2014 study conducted by NISE, wastelands with a minimum Global Horizontal Irradiance (GHI) threshold of 3.5 kWh/m²/day can serve as feasible locations for deploying solar plants since they typically do not conflict with agriculture, forests, or wildlife reserves. Additionally, proximity—within 20 km—to road and rail networks, as well as substations, enhances the economic viability of solar power plants by supporting mobility and grid connectivity.
An upward revision of the country’s solar energy potential is expected to unleash a fresh wave of investments in the country’s clean energy sector. This will provide a strong incentive for the emergence of an indigenous yet globally competitive solar manufacturing ecosystem spread across the entire solar value chain. Corporations that had previously been reluctant to invest in giga-scale production of solar cells, ingots and wafers, polysilicon, and metallurgical-grade silicon are now likely to be compelled by market dynamics to commit substantial resources to these segments.
An increased potential for ground-mounted and floating solar energy generation can enable state governments in India to better plan their resources, including land and water.
This revision will also provide a fillip to ancillary components manufacturing and support services, generating thousands of green jobs. The large-scale deployment of solar panels will stimulate an indigenous and viable recycling and upcycling solar panel industry, especially for constituents such as silver, copper, aluminium, glass, and silicon. Furthermore, an increased potential for ground-mounted and floating solar energy generation can enable state governments in India to better plan their resources, including land and water. Along with the Union Government, India can plan common infrastructure such as power-transmission corridors, roads, railways, and townships, to optimise the respective states’ land use patterns. This will bring in economies of scale and significantly improve business efficiency.
Once the increased solar potential is quantified and notified for utilisation of feasible regions, a new epoch of solar energy generation can be unleashed. As new-age modules—with improved rating (>700 Wp), module efficiency (>20 percent), and module area (<2.5 m²) are deployed—the solar energy contribution to the country’s energy mix will improve fundamentally. As the principal advocate of the International Solar Alliance and the ‘One Sun, One World, One Grid’ initiatives, India is well-positioned to leverage this momentum to establish itself as a global leader in advancing solar energy for accelerated, sustainable, and equitable green transitions.
Labanya Prakash Jena is working as a sustainable finance specialist at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) and is an advisor at the Climate and Sustainability Initiative (CSI).
Prasad Ashok Thakur is an alumnus of IIT Bombay, IIM Ahmedabad.
Labanya Prakash Jena is Director at the Climate and Sustainability Initiative (CSI) and a visiting senior fellow at the London School of Economics and Political …
Prasad Ashok Thakur is a CIMO scholar and has authored a book and several articles published with The World Bank Asian Development Bank Institute United …
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