Forging a 21st-Century Green Superpower: India's Renewables, Storage, and Hydrogen Revolution

Mint

5 days ago

In a no-holds-barred assessment of India's transition to green energy, Mahesh Kolli, Founder and Group President,Greenko Group, and Vishal Mehta, India Leader, Energy Practice at BCG, chart India's pathway to building a low-carbon economy and achieving energy self-reliance.
Their conversation is featured in Episode 2 of the India for the World podcast by Mint and BCG, which delves into India's ambitious energy transition goals, including the pursuit of 500 GW of renewables by 2030, the promise of green hydrogen, and the critical role of energy storage.
Let's start with the good news: with hundreds of gigawatts of solar and wind potential spread across the country, and a robust, unified power-grid network (the third largest in the world), India has all the ingredients to scale low-carbon energy rapidly. In 2024 alone, the country installed more than 28 GW of solar and wind capacity, the third-highest addition worldwide, cementing its place as a global leader in the energy transition. What lies ahead is the chance to redefine India's role in the global energy value chain.
For India, building on this strong foundation and moving from spending $250 billion on fossil-fuel imports to becoming a global supplier of low-carbon energy calls for a three-pronged approach.
Integrating almost 400 GW of intermittent renewables—solar and wind—means synchronising generation with demand. Unlike conventional sources, solar and wind output fluctuates hourly and seasonally. India already experiences a 20–30 percent gap between daily peak and baseload demand, and similar swings across the year.
Balancing these variations will require a portfolio of storage solutions. Rather than betting on a single technology, India must evaluate and deploy each option for the task at hand—for example, lithium-ion batteries for short-duration balancing, pumped-hydro for medium-term storage, and emerging long-duration chemistries for seasonal shifts.
Keeping a system-level target of about INR 5/kWh for renewable-energy-plus-storage costs will mark the tipping point at which coal power can give way to intermittent renewables.
India's vast solar potential—and well-honed execution capabilities—has made solar the hero of its renewables story, but grid stability demands equal emphasis on other low-carbon sources.
First, wind capacity must keep pace, supplying complementary generation during non-solar hours.
Second, innovative nuclear technologies, such as Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), can provide the firm baseload needed for a low-carbon power system. The Indian government's new target of 100 GW of nuclear power by 2047, along with the marquee decision to involve private players, can bring the same capital, technical know-how, and execution speed that catapulted solar.
While storage and new low-carbon generation underpin energy self-reliance, green hydrogen can turn India from an energy importer into an exporter. This is underpinned by India's large annual consumption of Hydrogen which exceeds six million tonnes (already larger than that of Western Europe) and offers stable demand to de-risk projects.
India's deep technological and operational expertise in derivatives such as ammonia and methanol will enable faster roll-out of large-scale integrated plants.
With the National Green Hydrogen Mission kickstarting India's green hydrogen revolution by bringing down the cost of domestic green hydrogen to $2-3/ kg, India stands at the cusp of a unique opportunity to not only displace $15-20 billion of LNG imports, but to also establish itself as a supplier of low-carbon molecules, ergo low-carbon energy, to regions such as Japan, Korea and Europe.
To sum up, India's energy sector is poised to embody 'Local for Global,' strengthening the nation's status as an indispensable trade partner worldwide. Indian businesses and the government must act now to seize this opportunity and lay the foundation for a green "Vishwaguru Bharat'.
Note to readers: This article is part of Mint's paid consumer connect Initiative. Mint assumes no editorial involvement or responsibility for errors, omissions, or content accuracy.
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