The Solar Energy Corporation of India round-the-clock renewable energy auction discovered a tariff of Rs five point two five per unit, which the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy secretary Santosh Sarangi presented as evidence of growing competitiveness in integrated solar, wind and storage technologies at the CII International Energy Conference and Exhibition in New Delhi. He indicated that the government had anticipated a higher price but that competitive bidding by developers produced a lower rate. The outcome was framed as a milestone for hybrid projects intended to provide firm renewable supply.

The RTC procurement requires 90 per cent assured power availability in every time block and specifies that solar will supply only 50 per cent of daytime output, demonstrating how complementary resources and storage can meet dispatchable demand. Officials described the design as supporting reliability and system flexibility through hybridisation. Session participants noted implications for grid planning and dispatch protocols.

Sarangi noted that India has exceeded 300 GW of renewable energy capacity and remains on course for the Prime Minister's target of 500 GW of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030, attributing progress to policy certainty, domestic manufacturing and market-creation measures. He highlighted domestic manufacturing with more than 213 gigawatt (GW) of solar module capacity and over 32 GW of solar cell capacity, and said nearly 85 per cent of wind energy manufacturing has been indigenised. Those manufacturing scales were cited as underpinning competitive supply chains.

He said the PM Surya Ghar scheme had reached more than five mn households and was progressing towards its target of ten mn rooftop solar installations. On regional cooperation, he argued that cross-border electricity trade needs both transmission infrastructure and harmonised regulations and that the One Sun, One World, One Grid initiative could enable sharing of resources across time zones. The conference also recorded a memorandum of understanding between Odisha and Madhya Pradesh to foster a knowledge partnership on renewable energy.

The agreement will support exchange of best practices and innovations including reactive power management with backing from the Bhopal-based Centre for Mission of Energy Transition. Representatives from Sri Lanka and Bhutan and a former senior economic relations official highlighted the need for stronger regional electricity integration and regulatory harmonisation to bolster energy security. Officials concluded that competitive bidding and integrated RTC projects are creating momentum for scalable, reliable renewable power solutions.