Gujarat Launches 2025 Renewable Energy Policy to Become Global Clean Energy Hub

Today, at a state-level programme in Gandhinagar, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel launched the Government of Gujarat's Integrated Renewable Energy Policy-2025. Under the guidance of the Chief Minister and the leadership of Energy Minister Rushikesh Patel and Minister of State Kaushik Vekariya, the Integrated Renewable Energy Policy-2025 has been prepared by the Energy Department to address the challenges of climate change and to ensure a rapid transition towards clean and sustainable energy systems, the Chief Minister's Office said in a press release.

Aligned with India's Panchamrit Sankalp, Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), and the vision of Viksit Gujarat @2047, this policy is a significant step towards establishing Gujarat as a globally competitive clean energy hub by promoting investment, innovation, and grid stability in the renewable energy sector of the state.

Building upon the state's legacy of leadership in the renewable energy sector and with a target of achieving more than 100 gigawatts of capacity by 2030, the Gujarat Integrated Renewable Energy Policy-2025 is being announced to make a significant contribution to India's target of achieving 500 gigawatts of non-fossil fuel-based energy capacity by 2030.

Through a simple and integrated framework, this policy aims to facilitate Ease of Doing Business, promote innovative and emerging technologies, enhance grid stability, generate employment in the green energy sector, and ensure energy security, affordable tariffs, and sustainable economic growth, thereby establishing Gujarat as a globally competitive renewable energy hub.

A key pillar of this policy is the promotion and integration of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) to ensure large-scale renewable energy integration and grid stability. Grid-connected and co-located BESS projects along with solar, wind, and hybrid projects have been encouraged. The use of BESS is envisaged for transmission support, grid ancillary services, distribution utilities, and end consumers. Strategic locations for BESS installation will be identified by the State Nodal Agency (GEDA) in coordination with GETCO, SLDC, and DISCOMs.

Under the RE Policy-2025, relaxations have been provided for improvements in commissioning timelines for renewable energy projects, primarily for captive and third-party sale projects. Commissioning timelines for evacuation infrastructure have been rationalised based on voltage levels instead of project capacity. Additional time has been permitted for the commissioning of projects and evacuation lines, which will facilitate smoother project implementation.

The RE Policy-2025 establishes a supportive framework for wind repowering and refurbishment in alignment with the National Repowering Policy. Repowering and refurbishment have been permitted without mandatorily dismantling existing wind turbine generators, and the timeline for the same has been extended up to 24 months. Supportive measures include extension of the existing PPA tenure during the repowering period, waiver of transmission charges on unutilised transmission capacity during transition, priority for enhancement of renewable energy connectivity capacity, and relaxations in micro-siting norms.

The RE Policy-2025 enables on-demand renewable energy connectivity through the Akshay-Urja-Setu portal and supports the development of new transmission schemes in renewable energy-rich areas. Continuity has been ensured through provisions such as permission for ownership transfer for projects under previous renewable energy policies and extension of timelines for completing projects pre-approved under earlier policies.

Importantly, the RE Policy-2025 actively encourages emerging and advanced renewable energy technologies to diversify Gujarat's clean energy portfolio and accelerate innovation. These include ocean energy, geothermal energy, concentrated solar thermal (CST), building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) systems, rail and road-integrated photovoltaic (RIPV) applications, agrivoltaics, and vertical-axis wind turbines, which will be supported through pilot projects.

In addition, the policy strengthens rooftop and distributed renewable energy, promotes private sector participation and start-ups, and integrates initiatives for employment generation and skill development in the green energy sector. Collectively, these measures will further reinforce Gujarat's transition towards a stable, investor-friendly, and future-ready renewable energy ecosystem.

- ANI