Babus, mantris & buzz: BRICS Speaker Conference likely in October
· Free Press Journal
BRICS Speaker Conference likely in October
After the BRICS Summit, the BRICS Speaker Conference is likely to be held on October 26 and 27 at Parliament.
Visit asg-reflektory.pl for more information.
Nadda dismisses speculation over Bharat Ratna for PM Modi
During a recent press conference, Union Minister J.P. Nadda dismissed speculation about conferring India’s highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Addressing media queries, Nadda clarified that the Bharatiya Janata Party has held no internal discussions on the matter.
The statement came amid periodic demands from supporters seeking the award in recognition of the Prime Minister’s leadership. Nadda’s response sought to put an end to the speculation and refocus attention on the government’s governance and policy initiatives.
Punjab Congress unites over Sangrur tragedy: Could Pilot's role get him Rajasthan's top job?
In a rare display of unity, Punjab Congress leaders, including Amarinder Singh Raja Warring and former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, recently shared the stage with senior leader Sachin Pilot. Setting aside their differences, the leaders attended a protest in Chandigarh over the tragic death of Gulzar Singh, who allegedly died by suicide in Sangrur.
While the immediate focus remains on seeking justice for Singh, the coming together of the leaders has also drawn political attention. Sachin Pilot’s role in bringing together leaders from different factions of the Punjab Congress is being seen as significant.
Analysts suggest that if Pilot is able to maintain this unity and consolidate the party in Punjab, it could have wider political implications, including for his prospects in Rajasthan.
BUREAUCRACY
Beyond solar: IAS Akash Tripathi on SECI’s vision for India’s clean energy future
As India moves towards a cleaner and more energy-secure future, the Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited (SECI) is playing an increasingly important role in shaping the country’s renewable-energy landscape. Over the years, SECI has expanded beyond solar to include wind, hybrid projects, energy storage, firm and dispatchable renewable energy, and emerging clean-energy solutions.
In this exclusive interview with Whispers In The Corridors, Akash Tripathi, IAS, Managing Director, SECI, discusses the organisation’s 15-year journey, the next phase of India’s renewable-energy growth, and the growing importance of storage, green hydrogen, domestic manufacturing and innovative procurement models.
Tripathi also shares his vision for SECI by 2030 and beyond, focusing on reliable clean power, stronger clean-energy markets, greater industrial participation and India’s journey towards a sustainable and energy-secure Viksit Bharat.
Q: SECI is completing 15 years of its journey. How do you assess the organisation’s contribution to India’s renewable energy transformation, and what are the key milestones that stand out?
A: Fifteen years of SECI reflect the remarkable evolution of renewable energy in India. When SECI was established in 2011, its mandate was largely centred on supporting the growth of solar energy. Today, the organisation operates across a much wider renewable-energy landscape, covering solar, wind, hybrid projects, storage, firm and dispatchable power, and more.
I would point to affordability, sustainability and accessibility as three of SECI’s most meaningful contributions to India’s renewable-energy story. Through transparent competitive bidding, demand aggregation and long-term power arrangements, SECI has helped reduce the cost of renewable power, make it commercially sustainable at scale, and extend its reach to states across the country that might otherwise have moved more slowly in this transition.
At SECI, this evolution has also been accompanied by continuous innovation in procurement and market design. The organisation has moved from conventional solar and wind procurement towards hybrid, Round-the-Clock, Firm and Dispatchable Renewable Energy, assured peak power and storage-linked procurement. More recently, SECI has introduced mechanisms such as Contracts for Difference (CfD) and is exploring more market-oriented models that can align renewable power procurement with changing market requirements.
Another important dimension is SECI’s push towards becoming an organisation with a wide portfolio of its own renewable-energy projects. SECI currently has around 2.275 GW of its own renewable capacity under development. Its projects are spread across diverse locations, including the 100 MW Floating Solar PV Power Plant at Getalsud Dam, Ranchi; the 25 MW Solar PV Power Plant (50 MWp) with 20 MW/50 MWh Battery Energy Storage System at Taru, Leh, Ladakh; and the 300 MW Solar PV Power Plant at Ramagiri, Andhra Pradesh, which is the largest self-owned project of SECI so far. This gives SECI an opportunity to build operational experience while strengthening its long-term financial and institutional position.
SECI has also expanded into newer areas of the green-energy ecosystem. The competitive price discovery in the Green Ammonia auctions has received international attention.
Going forward, SECI is also looking beyond the domestic market through technological diversification while expanding its customer base.
Q. As India moves towards ambitious clean-energy targets, what role do you see SECI playing in accelerating the next phase of renewable-energy growth?
A: The nation achieved a 50 per cent non-fossil share of its total installed electricity capacity in June 2025, five years ahead of the target year. India has already crossed 300 GW of installed non-fossil-fuel capacity and is progressing towards its remaining renewable-energy goals. The next phase will therefore require a shift in focus from capacity creation alone towards the quality, reliability and flexibility of that power.
SECI has an important role in this transition by developing commercial frameworks that respond to how electricity is consumed. The emphasis will increasingly be on solutions that combine different renewable resources and storage, enabling power to be supplied during peak demand rather than only when generation is naturally available. SECI has already been evolving its power-supply models in this direction.
Deepening the short-term renewable-energy market through innovative contracting models is also an area where SECI has initiated work, including by introducing Contracts for Difference in the Indian renewable-energy sector for the first time.
The company is also expanding its role across different renewable-energy technologies, including through its recent allocation as the National Programme Implementing Agency for the Small Hydro Power Development Scheme.
Our role in the coming years will therefore be to help convert India’s renewable-resource potential into dependable, competitive and system-ready clean power, while supporting the application of clean energy in sectors such as steel, fertilisers and maritime, where decarbonisation will require solutions beyond conventional renewable power.
Q. What are SECI’s key priorities and strategic initiatives for the next five to ten years to support India’s transition towards a cleaner and more sustainable energy future?
A: The next five to ten years will be about building greater depth and resilience into India’s clean-energy transition. The evolving geopolitical situation has made renewable energy a critical pillar of the nation’s energy security as well. As renewable capacity scales up, SECI’s priorities will extend beyond conventional renewable power to technologies, applications and procurement models that can meet the changing requirements of the power system and the wider economy.
A key priority will be energy storage. As the share of renewable energy increases, storage will become increasingly important for balancing the grid and making renewable power available when it is needed.
SECI will also support the development of domestic clean-energy manufacturing capabilities through the PLI Scheme for high-efficiency solar PV modules. Building indigenous manufacturing capacity will strengthen the renewable-energy supply chain and contribute to an Atmanirbhar Bharat.
At the same time, the focus will be on scaling up emerging technologies and new applications, including offshore wind, agri-PV and other innovative renewable-energy solutions. Programmes such as PM-KUSUM can take renewable energy closer to the end user by supporting the solarisation of agricultural feeders and decentralised solar pumping, with benefits for reliable daytime power and reduced dependence on conventional fuels.
More broadly, SECI will continue to support the greening of non-electrified and hard-to-abate sectors, where clean-energy solutions can contribute to India’s broader energy-security and decarbonisation objectives.
Q. With solar, wind, hybrid and RTC renewable power gaining momentum, how is SECI evolving its bidding and procurement models to meet changing power-sector requirements?
A: SECI has moved decisively beyond conventional solar and wind tenders. The requirements of the power system today are more sophisticated, and SECI’s power-supply models have evolved accordingly, from standalone solar and wind to solar-wind hybrid projects, assured peak-power arrangements, Round-the-Clock supply, and Firm and Dispatchable Renewable Energy.
SECI is also introducing market-friendly models that are responsive to evolving sectoral requirements and encompass the energy needs of larger consumer categories. This reflects a deliberate move away from a one-size-fits-all approach towards instruments tailored to the needs of different consumers.
DISCOMs, industrial consumers and institutional buyers each have distinct load profiles, risk appetites and reliability requirements. SECI’s evolving suite of tenders is designed to be flexible enough to meet the needs of each category. As the renewable-energy sector becomes more diverse, this responsiveness will allow SECI to remain relevant not only to traditional offtakers but also to a widening base of consumers with different requirements.
Q. Energy storage is critical for large-scale renewable integration. What opportunities do you see in battery storage, Green Hydrogen and emerging technologies, and how can SECI build a robust ecosystem around them?
A: Renewable energy, including large hydro, contributed 26.2 per cent of total electricity generation in FY 2025-26. With the increasing share of intermittent energy, it is necessary to adopt mechanisms for storing and converting energy at a commensurate scale.
Battery Energy Storage is one of the most immediate examples. As renewable-energy penetration increases, storage can help manage variability, meet peak requirements and improve the utilisation of renewable generation. SECI has already taken important steps towards establishing large-scale storage procurement and developing commercial models around it.
Green ammonia, in particular, provides near-term demand by replacing grey ammonia in domestic fertiliser production and opening export opportunities in markets such as the EU, Japan and South Korea, which are seeking green ammonia for shipping fuel and industrial decarbonisation.
SECI’s role across these areas remains consistent, even as the technologies differ. It is to help move these solutions from demonstration to deployment by creating credible, aggregated demand; designing transparent procurement mechanisms; and establishing long-term market structures that give investors and developers the confidence to build at scale. The technologies themselves are largely proven elsewhere in the world; what India’s ecosystem needs is market architecture that makes them commercially viable here.
Q. How is SECI attracting private and international investment into India’s renewable-energy sector, and where do you see further opportunities?
A: SECI’s competitive bidding mechanism provides transparent price discovery, while long-term power purchase and sale arrangements offer investors greater assurance on revenues and offtake. These factors help make a project bankable rather than merely promising. Scale, in turn, comes from SECI aggregating demand across states and DISCOMs and structuring opportunities at a size that can attract serious long-term capital.
International investors are drawn to India for a combination of scale, sustained demand growth and a policy direction that has remained steady. Domestic capital, meanwhile, is moving beyond generation into manufacturing and storage.
The objective is to create an investment environment where capital is attracted not only to individual projects but also to India’s broader clean-energy growth story. SECI is contributing by providing transparent procurement, credible counterparties and commercially structured opportunities.
Q. Domestic manufacturing of solar modules, cells and renewable-energy components is vital for energy security. How can SECI strengthen the clean-energy manufacturing ecosystem?
A: SECI is contributing primarily by creating visibility on future demand. Large-scale procurement programmes provide manufacturers with a clearer indication of market requirements, allowing them to make long-term decisions on capacity, technology and supply chains.
This creates an important link between deployment and manufacturing. As renewable capacity expands, domestic manufacturing can expand alongside it; and as Indian manufacturing becomes stronger, the country becomes better positioned to support further deployment.
There is also a strategic dimension worth noting: a meaningful share of investment in solar modules, wind components or electrolysers can help de-risk India’s energy supply chain from global shocks, including crude price volatility and disruptions in critical minerals and equipment.
The SIGHT Scheme’s manufacturing component, which incentivises domestic electrolyser production under the National Green Hydrogen Mission, is a direct example. As SIGHT’s implementing agency, SECI is steering this domain alongside conventional generation and storage.
Q. With renewable energy becoming increasingly important for industries and businesses, how can SECI accelerate green-power adoption across the C&I sector?
A: What C&I buyers need is fundamentally different from what a DISCOM needs, and our offerings must reflect that. A steel plant, a data centre and an IT park do not consume power in the same way, and a one-size-fits-all solar or wind contract will not serve all three effectively. That is why SECI is finalising a dedicated procurement framework for this segment, built around customised FDRE, hybrid and RTC instruments designed around how a specific industry consumes power, rather than asking industry to adapt to a standard renewable contract.
Instruments like virtual PPAs also matter more in this segment because they allow a company to decarbonise its footprint without requiring a renewable-energy project to be physically located nearby. This is particularly important for industries with land constraints or geographically fixed operations.
If I had to describe the shift in one line, we are moving from selling renewable energy to industry to designing renewable energy around industry. That is a more demanding role for SECI, but it is also where the next potential for growth in the sector could come from.
Q: As SECI enters its next chapter, what is your vision for the organisation by 2030 and beyond, and how do you see it contributing to a sustainable and energy-secure Viksit Bharat?
A: SECI is already working towards becoming an integrated clean-energy provider with a wide global footprint and the flagbearer of Renewable Energy.
By 2030 and beyond, I would like SECI to be recognised by the scale of transformation it has enabled — stronger clean-energy markets, greater reliability, deeper industrial participation and stronger capabilities across the value chain. This would include expanding SECI’s international engagement to support India’s clean-energy capabilities and facilitate opportunities beyond domestic markets, while also building a stronger base of its own renewable-energy projects.
SECI must remain responsive to a rapidly changing energy landscape. Technologies will evolve, consumer requirements will change and new forms of energy will emerge.
I also foresee SECI contributing to technological advancements, creating and expanding renewable-energy markets and providing greater access to clean energy across geographies.
A country with abundant, affordable and increasingly indigenous clean energy is better positioned to support industry, create new manufacturing opportunities and reduce exposure to external energy shocks. That is the larger significance of SECI’s work.
A Viksit Bharat must be economically strong, technologically capable and energy secure. SECI is contributing to that vision by helping build the clean-energy foundations on which India’s next phase of growth can rest.
Jha promoted as Director General of Central Bureau of Communication
Rajesh Kumar Jha has been promoted as DG, CBC, New Delhi. He is a 1995-batch IIS officer and is scheduled to retire this month.
(DISCLAIMER: Correctness of this content is the responsibility of the author. By arrangement with whispersinthecorridors.com)