India needs 86 GW additional thermal power by FY36, 64 GW under works: Govt

New Delhi: India needs to add 86,440 MW of thermal power generation capacity by 2035-36 and out of this, a total of 63,545 MW are at various stages of implementation, Parliament was informed on Monday.

As per the National Generation Adequacy Plan (2026-27 to 2035-36) prepared by CEA (Central Electricity Authority) in March 2026, the required thermal capacity based on coal and lignite is estimated at around 3,15,000 MW to meet the projected electricity demand by 2035-36, the Minister of State for Power Shripad Naik said in a written reply to Rajya Sabha on Monday.

According to the reply, against this (3,15,000MW), the installed coal and lignite-based capacity as on March 31, 2026, stood at 2,28,560 MW, he informed the House.


The minimum additional thermal capacity required to meet the projected demand is estimated at approximately 86,440 MW, he also informed the House.

During FY 2026-27 (till June, 2026), thermal capacities of 2,260 MW have already been commissioned, he also told the House.

In addition, there is 47,545 MW of capacity currently under construction. Furthermore, 16,000 MW of capacity has been awarded and is due for construction, he stated.

The minister further said, with adequate power availability in the country, the requirement for electricity has been met in both energy and peak demand, with only a marginal gap.

The details of actual power supply position in terms of energy and peak demand for the current FY 2026-27 (up to June, 2026) show that during fiscal year 2026-27 (up to June, 2026), India got supply of 2,70,820 MW electricity against the 2,70,832 MW highest peak demand.

In another written reply to the House, the minister stated that development of transmission infrastructure is being undertaken in a phased manner, commensurate with the growing electricity demand and planned generation capacity addition, including renewable energy.

The National Electricity Plan envisages development of the transmission system with an estimated investment of about Rs 9,16,142 crore during the plan period (2022-32).

Grid modernization measures, including deployment of Static Synchronous Compensator (STATCOMs), Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), Synchronous Condensers and other advanced grid support technologies are also being planned to enhance grid reliability, flexibility and facilitate integration of renewable energy.

Further, as on May 30, 2026, addition of 2,17,199 circuit kilometre (ckm) of Transmission lines, 9,38,495 MVA of Transformation capacity and 84,390 MW of Inter-Regional capacity has been done since 2014.

Thus, total inter-regional transmission capacity has become 1,20,340 MW, enabling reliable transfer of power across regions.

He stated that there is adequate availability of power in the country. Present installed generation capacity of the country is 548.86 GW (as on June, 2026).

The country has addressed the critical issue of power deficiency by adding 324.7 GW of generation capacity since April, 2014, transforming the country from power deficit to power sufficient.

As on June 30, 2026, the country's total installed generation capacity reached 5,48,858 MW, comprising of 2,51,489 MW (45.82 per cent of total installed capacity) of fossil-fuel sources i.e. Coal & Lignite, Gas, Diesel and 2,97,369 MW (54.18 per cent of total installed capacity) of non-fossil fuel sources i.e. Solar, Wind, Hydro, Nuclear and Biomass.

The government has set an ambitious target of 100 GW nuclear power capacity by 2047.