What’s Driving India’s Historic Renewable Energy Expansion?

India added a record 22 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy capacity in the first half of 2025 – a 57% jump from the 14.2 GW installed during the same period last year. The new capacity includes 18.4 GW of solar, 3.5 GW of wind and 250 megawatts (MW) of bioenergy, which is generated from plant and animal waste. This marks the country’s highest-ever addition in any six-month period. The surge was largely driven by developers moving quickly to take advantage of the government’s Interstate Transmission System charge waiver, which begins at 25% and increases annually until full implementation by June 2028, significantly lowering project costs and incentivizing developers to act now.

India is now inching closer to its goal of sourcing 50% of its installed power capacity from clean energy sources, with a total of 234 GW in place, including large hydropower projects. While this growth is positive from a strict emissions…