Vadodara: India successfully met its all-time peak power demand of 271 GW in May this year and is preparing for a 300 GW capacity next year as electricity consumption continues to rise, union power minister Manohar Lal Khattar said on Monday.Addressing the inaugural session of the Vibrant Gujarat Regional Conference in Vadodara, Khattar said the country had created capacity for 284 GW this year to avoid shortages and was gearing to add 30 GW, driven largely by demand from data centres and expanding industries.He attributed the achievement to reforms and strategic investments undertaken over the past 12 years under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership.“In 2014, the country’s peak demand was 136 GW and even that could not be fully met. Today, demand has doubled and India is reliably supplying power to its growing economy,” Khattar said.The minister said India maintained energy security despite geopolitical uncertainties in West Asia and continued to strengthen its power infrastructure. He added that distribution reforms had improved the financial health of power utilities while ensuring better services for consumers.Khattar said Gujarat, with more than 50 GW of renewable energy capacity, was leading the country’s transition towards green manufacturing and playing a key role in developing the ecosystem required for the Green Hydrogen Mission.
