Extracted Data Points

  • Ministry of Power's advisory committee meeting was held in Chandigarh on grid stability
  • Chaired by Union Power Minister Shri Manohar Lal
  • Attended by Minister of State for Power Shri Shripad Yesso Naik, committee member MPs, Power Ministry Secretary, and senior representatives from Central Electricity Authority, Grid Controller of India Limited, and Central Transmission Utility of India Limited
  • India added record renewable energy capacity exceeding 50 GW in one year
  • Discussion focused on grid stability requirements due to: increasing electricity demand, large-scale renewable energy integration, growing share of inverter-based generation resources
  • Specific topics included: safe renewable energy integration, transmission strengthening, energy storage, robust reactive power support, grid adaptation, technical standard compliance, forecasting, power quality, grid robustness
  • Grid stability is central to energy security
  • Committee appreciated existing initiatives including: adequate resource availability, ancillary services, energy storage incentives, STATCOM and synchronous condenser deployment, PMU-based monitoring, black-start mock drills, strengthened technical standards
  • 10 key actions identified for grid stability:

1. Avoid mismatch between transmission lines and renewable energy project commissioning to prevent power cuts

2. Promote pumped storage projects for long-term storage to ensure resource adequacy and provide inertial support

3. Encourage suitable bulk consumers to locate near large renewable energy generation complexes to optimize transmission investment

4. Plan and deploy devices like STATCOMs and synchronous condensers to maintain voltage stability and system robustness

5. Establish appropriate regulatory and commercial systems to leverage flexible services from renewable energy sources and storage systems

6. Periodic and time-bound review of technical standards for new technologies including battery energy storage systems, grid-forming inverters, electrolyzers, and data center loads

7. Strengthen compliance monitoring through periodic self-audits and compliance reporting by grid-connected institutions

8. Improve renewable energy forecasting through better weather data, calibration and maintenance of weather stations, and installation of automated weather stations at renewable energy plants

9. Enhance grid adaptation by strengthening transmission and distribution infrastructure in weather-affected areas, maintaining emergency restoration systems, and increasing black-start capability for faster restoration

10. Develop appropriate framework for power quality and harmonics assessment given increasing penetration of inverter-based resources