The International Energy Agency (IEA) projects that India’s renewable power capacity will reach around 530 GW by 2030, led overwhelmingly by solar photovoltaics (PV), according to the executive summary of its India Renewable Energy Market Report 2026. The India renewable capacity of 530 GW is an IEA modelling result, not a government target. Solar PV accounts for more than 80% of the growth, with solar capacity exceeding 350 GW by 2030. The IEA says India has become the world’s second fastest-growing renewable energy market and the second-largest manufacturer of solar PV modules.
India renewable capacity: where the 530 GW comes from
The IEA says renewable power capacity has already surpassed 300 GW, almost quadrupling over the past decade. India achieved its objective of sourcing 50% of installed power capacity from non-fossil technologies in 2025, five years ahead of schedule.
For 2030, the report gives this split of the roughly 530 GW:
- Solar PV: more than 350 GW, over 80% of the growth
- Wind: approaching 90 GW
- Hydropower: 75 GW, as large conventional plants are commissioned and pumped storage investment accelerates
On this basis the IEA expects India to meet its target of 500 GW of non-fossil capacity by 2030 on time, a milestone towards its ambition of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2070. The report notes that the IEA figure is the result of its own modelling. The Central Electricity Authority’s Report on Optimal Generation Mix 2030 projects installed capacity of 485 GW in FY 2029-30, including 293 GW of solar PV and 100 GW of wind, and the IEA says the differences come from different modelling assumptions.
Generation, import savings and costs
Renewable generation exceeded 500 TWh in 2025, about one-quarter of India’s total electricity supply, and is forecast to approach 950 TWh in 2030, which would be 35% of electricity supply. Solar PV overtook hydropower as India’s largest source of renewable electricity in 2025 and is expected to provide more than half of renewable generation by 2030. The share of variable renewables in total supply rises from around 14% to approximately 26% nationally, and significantly higher in some states.
The IEA also quantifies the energy security effect. Without the solar PV, wind and bioenergy capacity added since 2010, coal imports in 2025 would have been around 110 million tonnes higher, and import dependence of electricity generation would have exceeded 30%, about twice the actual level. Renewable electricity reduced cumulative spending on coal and natural gas imports by more than USD 100 billion between 2011 and 2025, and the savings are set to more than double by 2030.
On costs, the report says utility-scale solar PV in India has the world’s second-lowest levelised generation costs, at USD 30-35 per MWh. Tariffs for solar PV projects commissioned in 2025 were around 40% below the average cost of coal-fired electricity. Since 2010, India has awarded over 220 GW of utility-scale renewable capacity through competitive auctions. In 2025 it auctioned 15 GW of hybrid projects, taking cumulative hybrid auctions to 64 GW, both the largest volumes globally, at average tariffs of around USD 45 per MWh between 2023 and 2025.
Rooftop, corporate demand and manufacturing
Distributed solar PV capacity for self-consumption is set to triple to more than 100 GW by 2030. The report points to the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana for residential rooftops and PM-KUSUM for agricultural feeders and irrigation pumps. Corporate power purchase agreements are expected to underpin around 20% of utility-scale solar PV and wind capacity additions by 2030, helped by open-access reforms.
On manufacturing, annual solar PV module capacity reached around 225 GW in September 2026 and is projected to rise further by 2030, keeping India second in the world. The IEA expects India’s wind manufacturing industry to become the world’s second-largest by 2030. The report credits the Production Linked Incentive scheme and domestic sourcing requirements, and notes that new policies target upstream solar segments where global dependence on imports from China exceeds 95%.
The report also covers other clean fuels. Electric vehicles accounted for more than 11% of new vehicle sales in 2026, and India leads global growth in electric three-wheelers. Liquid biofuel consumption reached around 11 billion litres in 2025 and is projected to reach 16 billion litres by 2030.
What it means for India’s clean-energy sector
The report’s message is that deployment is on track, but the system around it must keep pace. The IEA says faster transmission expansion, improved forecasting and dispatch, more energy storage, stronger demand-side flexibility and greater flexibility from fossil fuel power plants will be needed to integrate growing shares of variable renewable energy. It calls improving DISCOM finances central to investor confidence, and says land acquisition, permitting and execution delays are crucial issues for wind and hydropower projects.
The IEA adds that swiftly addressing these challenges could accelerate renewable power capacity deployment over 2026-2030 by more than 20%. For developers, equipment makers and investors, the report points to steady demand for solar, wind, storage and grid projects through the decade.
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