India Will Stop Setting Annual Clean Energy Tender Targets

India Will Stop Setting Annual Clean Energy Tender Targets

January 27, 2026

India Will Stop Setting Annual Clean Energy Tender Targets

India’s government has decided to stop announcing fixed yearly targets for clean energy tenders after facing delays and a large buildup of renewable projects that are yet to find buyers, senior officials said. The shift moves India away from blanket annual goals and toward issuing new renewable energy auctions only when there is clear demand from state utilities and power buyers, reflecting concerns over execution and market alignment.

Officials said India had originally aimed to auction about 50 gigawatts (GW) of fresh clean energy capacity in 2025, but only around 15 GW of tenders were actually issued, leaving developers holding rights to roughly 43 GW of renewable projects with no confirmed buyers. The backlog has arisen mainly because state power utilities have delayed purchase commitments, partly expecting power prices to fall and citing uncertainties around transmission readiness and delivery timelines.

Under the revised approach, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy will assess actual needs from state electricity utilities before floating tenders, rather than following predetermined annual targets. This demand-driven method is intended to reduce mismatches between project auctions and the readiness or willingness of buyers to sign power purchase agreements.

Despite the slowdown in tendering activity, officials maintained that India’s longer-term goal of achieving 500 GW of non-fossil fuel power capacity by 2030 remains on track. The country added around 38 GW of clean energy capacity in 2025, underscoring ongoing progress in renewable deployment even as auction processes are refined.

The government is also considering changes to how renewable energy tenders are managed. Power producers such as NTPC, NHPC and SJVN — which currently act as implementing agencies for renewable tenders — have asked to be relieved of these roles. Officials are evaluating the possibility of consolidating responsibilities under the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) to streamline tender issuance and execution.

The unsold renewable capacity held by these agencies varies, with NHPC having the largest share at about 15.8 GW and SECI the smallest at about 3.9 GW, according to government data