The ongoing fiscal year FY25 is likely to see significant addition of infrastructure to the interstate state transmission system (ISTS) network, according to an official report.
The newly-released “Rolling Plan: Interstate Transmission System 2028-29” by Central Transmission Utility of India Ltd (CTUIL) has estimated that a significant addition of transmission lines and substation capacity is likely in FY25, based on projects that are currently under construction.
The report has estimated that 20,322 ckm of new transmission lines and 1,85,055 MVA of substation capacity will be commissioned by end of FY29 (by March 31, 2029) based on projects that are currently under construction.
Of this envisaged addition, as much as 13,357 ckm of transmission lines and 1,10,255 MVA of substation capacity is likely to be added in FY25 itself. To put this in broad terms, over 60 per cent of the ISTS grid expansion to be achieved by end of FY29, based on projects that are currently under construction, is likely to take place this year itself.
The total investment envisaged in ISTS projects currently under construction is around Rs.95,997 crore. Of this, the projects scheduled to commission in FY25 entail Rs.43,607 crore worth of investment.
Projects under planning
Apart from projects under construction, a number of ISTS projects are currently in pre-construction stages such as planning, approval or bidding. Considering such projects, a total of 28,297 ckm of transmission lines and 2,70,980 MVA of substation capacity is expected to come on stream by end of FY29. The total envisaged investment of such projects is to the tune of Rs.1,98,645 crore. [See table]
To put this in perspective, the investment envisaged in projects currently under pre-construction stage is more than twice that of projects under physical construction.
Impact of pre-construction projects
The maximum fructification of infrastructure from projects currently pre-construction stage will be seen over the next two fiscal years — FY26 and FY27. These two years will see as much as 21,330 ckm of transmission lines and 2,04,590 MVA getting added.
Summary
Considering ISTS projects under all stages – whether pre-construction or under construction – the period FY25 to FY27 is expected to see major addition of transmission infrastructure – 37,600 ckm of transmission lines and 3,71,380 MVA of substation capacity. It may also be mentioned that most of this ISTS capacity is seen coming in the northern regional grid.
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