Chennai, October 8:
Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy Pralhad Joshi on Thursday urged the Tamil Nadu government to remove administrative and connectivity-related hurdles delaying renewable energy projects, stressing that the industry should not suffer because of decisions taken by the previous government.
Speaking at the inauguration of the eighth edition of Windergy India 2026, organised by the Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers Association, Joshi said the Centre was ready to extend full support to Tamil Nadu under the Green Energy Corridor III initiative. He called on the State government to address the bottlenecks holding up projects and facilitate the expansion of renewable energy capacity.
Joshi acknowledged that the State might have valid reasons for reviewing decisions taken by the previous administration, but said such reviews should not adversely affect the industry. He also assured the State that the Centre would consider a request to extend Green Energy Corridor III to additional parts of Tamil Nadu.
State Electricity Minister R Nirmalkumar said Tamil Nadu had considerable potential to expand wind and solar power generation. Extending the transmission corridor, he said, could enable the State to accommodate three to four times the renewable energy growth currently anticipated.
Joshi also highlighted the scope for repowering old wind turbines in Tamil Nadu. The State has around 4,100 MW of repowering potential involving turbines with capacities below 2 MW, he said. India as a whole has more than 25 GW of identified wind repowering potential, supported by a national policy framework.
On offshore wind energy, Joshi said the Centre had initially planned 500 MW projects each in Tamil Nadu and Gujarat. Subsequent studies, however, indicated that the projects would require investments exceeding Rs 7,000 crore. The estimated tariff is around Rs 5.50 per unit, and the Centre is awaiting firm communication from Tamil Nadu on a power purchase agreement at that rate before proceeding with development.
The Centre has already announced viability gap funding for offshore wind projects, he added.
Nirmalkumar also called for coordinated forecasting and planning of electricity demand between the Centre and the States, noting that climate change, industrial expansion, urbanisation and emerging electricity applications were making accurate demand estimates increasingly important.
The discussions assume significance as Tamil Nadu seeks to expand its renewable energy capacity while strengthening transmission infrastructure to accommodate additional generation.