The Government of India has launched a crucial audit of all stalled renewable energy projects lacking final contracts.
Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy Pralhad Joshi announced the review Monday, stating a decision on the fate of these projects will be made within 30 to 45 days.
The move is designed to inject pace into the country’s clean energy transition, which has been hampered by significant commercial hurdles.
The stalled capacity breakdown:
The key fact confirmed by the MNRE and market intelligence is the massive scale of the backlog, which creates uncertainty in India’s clean energy pipeline:
Total Capacity Stuck: Approximately 43,942 MW (or 43.9 GW) of awarded capacity has received Letters of Award (LoAs) but lacks the crucial Power Sale Agreements (PSAs) with buyers (Discoms).
The bottleneck:
While developers hold Letters of Award (LoAs), they have been unable to secure the final Power Sale Agreements (PSAs) with State power distribution companies (Discoms).
The core reason for the contract gridlock is the shifting demand landscape. Discoms are reluctant to purchase plain solar or wind power. They now demand Firm and Dispatchable Renewable Energy (FDRE)—meaning the power supply must be continuous and reliable, requiring mandatory integration with energy storage solutions. Projects without this storage component are struggling to find buyers.
The government’s case-by-case solution:
The MNRE has explicitly ruled out a blanket cancellation of these projects. Instead, Minister Joshi confirmed that officials have been directed to conduct a meticulous case-by-case assessment.
The review will focus on:
• Viability: Assessing the discovered tariff and the project’s overall execution prospects.
• Configuration: Determining if the project can be reconfigured to include storage and meet the FDRE mandate.
• Securing PSAs: Identifying potential procurers and bridging the contractual gap.
This phased approach ensures that projects with genuine potential are salvaged, while capacity that shows minimal or no prospects of execution will be cancelled as a last resort.
Stakes for India’s 2030 target:
The successful resolution of this logjam is vital for national energy security. The stuck 43.9 GW represents a significant portion of the capacity required to meet India’s ambitious goal of achieving 500 GW of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030. The audit is a clear signal from the government that it is prioritizing commercial viability and grid stability over mere capacity addition to ensure a resilient green energy future.
