Tenders are out for building infrastructure to transmit power from the western to the eastern regions of India — a project estimated to cost ₹6,444 crore.

Renewable energy capacities are bunching up in Gujarat and Rajasthan, and consumption centres are emerging in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. REC Power Development and Consultancy Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of government company REC Ltd, has put out tenders for selecting transmission service providers (TSP) for two packets of the project.

To manage the tendering process, REC Power Development has floated two subsidiaries — WR ER Part A Power Transmission Ltd; and WR ER Part C Power Transmission Ltd. These two companies will be transferred to the selected TSP.

Earlier, Central Transmission Utility India Ltd had estimated the cost of the WR ER Part A project at ₹6,444 crore. The cost of Part C has been estimated at ₹913 crore. WR ER Part A and WR ER Part C are being bid out for selecting a TSP on the basis of quoted tariffs (tariff-based competitive bidding).

The TSPs will transfer back the transmission assets to the government after 35 years. Part B is a smaller segment, which will be built on the basis of regulated tariffs; hence no tenders

30 GW of solar power capacity added in 2025

India added 30.16 GW of solar power capacity in April-December 2025, taking the total solar installation to 135.8 GW. The country added 4.47 GW of wind capacity; total wind capacity stands at 54.51 GW. Total non-fossil fuel-based electricity generation capacity, including large hydro (50.91 GW) and nuclear (8.78 GW), stands at 266.78 GW, according to data from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy. India’s total electricity generation capacity, till November 2025, stood at 509.74 GW.

UK awards CfD-backed offshore wind projects’

In the latest round of auctions for offshore wind in the UK, offshore wind farm developers have won a total capacity of 8.4 GW, for average prices of £91 per MWh (around ₹10 per kWhr) for projects in England and Wales; and £89 per MWh (₹9.4 per kWhr) for projects located in Scotland. These projects can provide electricity to 12 million homes annually.

These are the Contract for Difference (CfD) prices guaranteed by the Low Carbon Contracts Company (LCCC), which is wholly owned by the UK’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ). LCCC will pay the developers any difference between these prices and the average market prices; conversely, if the market prices are higher, the developers will pay LCCC the difference.

Two ‘floating wind projects’ have been granted a price of £216 per MWhr (₹22 per kWhr).

The results are noteworthy because they are about a fifth below the price limit set for the auction round. “These results show offshore wind is cheaper to build and operate than new gas,” says a DESNZ press release.

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Published on January 19, 2026