India added 7.8 GW of solar open access capacity in 2025, a largely flat 0.5% year-over-year (YoY) growth from 7.7 GW, according to Mercom’s Q4 & Annual 2025 India Solar Open Access Market Report. India’s cumulative installed solar open access capacity exceeded 30 GW as of December 2025.

India’s top states fostering open access power have emerged as the core engines of industrial electricity demand growth, driven by manufacturing clusters, rising captive generation, and accelerating adoption of renewable energy. Data from successive Central Electricity Authority reports over the past few years show that industrial electricity consumption and captive capacity have expanded in tandem, which mandates non-discriminatory open access to transmission and distribution networks.

The Andhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission proposed removing the cap of ₹0.4 (~$0.0044)/kWh on the distribution licensee’s monthly pass-through of fuel and power purchase cost adjustment (FPPCA) charges. The amendment also allows the Commission to issue a true-up or true-down order for FPPCA after the distribution company submits a petition for the full financial year, by the end of June in the following financial year.

The Madhya Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (MPERC) notified the Sixth Amendment to the MPERC (Terms and Conditions for Intra-State Open Access in Madhya Pradesh) (Revision-I) Regulations, 2021, introducing detailed provisions governing the treatment of open access demand, energy adjustment, surcharge applicability, and billing mechanisms. The amendment substitutes Regulation 13.2 of the principal regulations.

The Andhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission issued the draft second amendment to the Terms and Conditions for Tariff Determination from Renewable Energy Sources Regulation, 2025, intended to remove the condition that renewable hybrid energy projects and renewable energy with storage projects be connected at a single interconnection point.

Over 1,600 MW of renewable energy capacity is at risk of having its grid connectivity revoked due to non-compliance with General Network Access regulations. According to a tentative list notified by Central Transmission Utility, 15 solar, wind, and hybrid projects with a cumulative capacity of 1,622 MW are yet to declare commercial operation with compliance dates falling between January and April 2026.

HPCL Renewable and Green Energy, a wholly-owned subsidiary of HPCL, invited bids to select the owner’s engineer for the design, engineering, supply, erection, and commissioning of a 210 MW solar project with 400 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) in Maharashtra and a 140 MW solar project with 400 MWh of BESS in Andhra Pradesh. The last date to submit bids is February 15, 2026. Bids will be opened on the same day.

Waaree Energies announced plans to set up a 16 GWh integrated lithium-ion battery manufacturing plant in Rambili, Anakapalli, Andhra Pradesh, with an investment of ₹81.75 billion (~$901.26 million). The integrated greenfield lithium-ion manufacturing plant will cover the entire battery value chain, including cell manufacturing, battery packs, and large-scale battery energy storage systems.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) commissioned a 71 MW solar power project in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, strengthening its renewable energy portfolio. The power generated by the project will be supplied to BPCL’s refineries in Mumbai, Bina, and Kochi, helping reduce the company’s core refining operations’ carbon footprint. Spread across approximately 210 acres, the solar facility comprises approximately 129,000 solar modules, supported by 1,324 tons of structural steel and nearly 294 kilometres of cabling.

Chemical manufacturing company Tatva Chintan Pharma Chem signed agreements to procure 6.4 MW of power from AMPIN C&I Power Twenty Six’s (AMPIN) 19.8 MW wind-solar hybrid group captive project in Gujarat. Tatva Chintan will procure 3.2 MW each of wind and solar power from AMPIN’s 9.9 MW of solar and 9.9 MW of wind projects. The company will invest ₹40 million (~$440,984) to acquire a 10.99% stake in AMPIN’s special purpose vehicle.

Energy solutions provider Siemens Energy approved an investment of approximately ₹20.6 billion (~$226.33 million) through internal accruals to set up a 30,000 MVA power transformer factory. The facility is expected to become operational by the financial year (FY) 2030 to FY 2032. Siemens stated that it is setting up the transformer factory to cater to the high and increasing demand for large power transformers domestically and globally.

The INOXGFL Group won 600 MW of independent power producer (IPP) and 4.5 GW of operations and maintenance (O&M) businesses of wind energy developer Wind World India. The businesses were won through the National Company Law Board-approved resolution process. The acquisition will be executed through two group companies.

The French government launched its 3rd Multi-Year Energy Program to increase production of decarbonized, sovereign, and competitively priced energy in the country. The program introduces energy policy directions for the coming decade and charts the path towards France’s carbon neutrality by 2050. The program was issued for consultation with stakeholders before finalization.

Energy innovation in 2026 is being shaped by competitiveness, energy security, and supply chain resilience. After several years of strong growth, innovation funding is entering a more uncertain phase, with venture capital declining but public and corporate R&D remaining stable, according to the International Energy Agency’s report, ‘The State of Energy Innovation 2026.’