India does not expect the ongoing Middle East conflict to significantly disrupt its ability to meet peak summer electricity demand, with the government banking on coal, renewables and battery storage to offset any stress from gas supply disruptions.Speaking on the sidelines of the Bharat Electricity Summit 2026, power secretary Pankaj Agarwal said the country’s electricity system remains largely insulated because gas plays only a limited role in India’s power mix.“We are quite hopeful that this Middle East crisis is not going to affect us,” Agarwal said, as quoted by news agency ANI.
Limited dependence on gas keeps power supply shielded
Agarwal stressed that India uses relatively little gas-based power in normal operations, which sharply reduces the direct impact of any disruption linked to the Gulf crisis.
“In any case, we don’t use a lot of gas to meet our demand. About 2 and a half gigawatts is what we already have, which is off-grid. So that is consistently operating. That has no impact of Middle East crisis,” he said.As per Reuters, gas accounts for only around 2 per cent of India’s total power generation, though the country does rely on roughly 8 gigawatts (GW) of gas-fired capacity during peak-demand periods, especially in extreme summer heat.“Another about 8 gigawatts is what we use when we are actually really hard pressed, high-demand periods, particularly during the heat waves,” Agarwal said.
Govt counting on coal and renewables for peak demand
To ensure power availability during summer stress, the government is bringing in additional conventional and renewable capacity.Agarwal said the imported coal-based plant at Mundra in Gujarat is being readied to provide a major buffer.“What we have done right now is we are going to start the imported coal-based plant in Mundra that will give us a good 4,000 megawatts,” he said.India expects a 4 GW coal power plant in Gujarat to restart, which will help support demand if gas supplies tighten.The official added that the government is fast-tracking wind power projects, which can be particularly useful during evening and non-solar hours.“There is a lot of wind capacity which is about to be commissioned, we have kind of started a specific facilitation for the wind-based capacity because these capacities can help us in the non-solar hours,” Agarwal said.
Solar strong in daytime, batteries key for evening demand
Agarwal said India already has enough solar generation to comfortably meet daytime peak demand.“Solar hour, we have absolutely no problem, gas or no gas, we actually have no problem. We can very well meet more than 270 gigawatts,” he said, according to ANI.For the evening, when solar output drops and demand remains high, the focus is shifting to battery energy storage systems.“For the evening time, what we are working on is facilitating the commissioning of the battery energy projects also. About two and a half gigawatt hours is already under commissioning,” Agarwal said.“About 2.5 gigawatt hours of battery storage is already under commissioning, and we hope that gets commissioned very fast”, Agarwal added.NTPC is preparing to launch its first battery storage project soon, with Agarwal saying it is expected to come online in June.
Coal plants to play balancing role
Even as India expands renewables, coal will continue to be critical in balancing the grid.Agarwal highlighted the flexibility of coal-based plants, saying they can ramp down during periods of strong solar generation and ramp back up in the evening when demand remains elevated.“Flexibility of coal-based plants is actually unique during the daytime when you have plenty of solar. That is when you want the coal-based plants to ramp down. For the evening period, you actually need to ramp up the coal-based capacity,” he said.India had already asked domestic coal-based utilities earlier this month to be prepared to provide uninterrupted power supply in the event of gas shortages.India has produced 1 billion metric tons of coal for a second successive year, according to the coal ministry, which should further strengthen summer power preparedness.
Broader energy stress still a concern beyond electricity
While the power ministry remains confident in electricity supply, the wider energy picture remains more challenging.The US-Israeli war on Iran has disrupted gas supplies, prompting suppliers to issue force majeure notices and leaving India — the world’s second-largest liquefied petroleum gas importer — facing its worst cooking gas crisis in decades as shipments through the Strait of Hormuz have been nearly halted.That distinction is important: the government’s reassurance is specifically about power demand management, not the broader LPG or fuel import situation.
Russia, Africa partnerships also in focus
Apart from the immediate power supply outlook, Agarwal also flagged India’s growing international cooperation in the power sector.Russia has offered to partner with Indian companies for co-manufacturing electrical and power equipment in India, which he described as a business-to-business arrangement.He also said Power Grid Corporation of India is working with Kenya on a $311 million transmission project, reflecting India’s push to expand its role in overseas energy infrastructure.
