India hits 658 MU solar output, 238 GW peak demand in March

The National Load Despatch Centre (NLDC), a division of Grid Controller of India Limited, has released its monthly operational performance report for March 2026, recording new highs in both solar generation and peak electricity demand while maintaining stable grid operations.

The Indian power grid registered an all-time high solar generation of 658 million units (MU) on March 27, 2026, surpassing the previous record of 655 MU set in February 2026. This contributed to total solar generation of 18,153 MU during the month. Peak power demand also reached a new high of 238,378 MW on March 7, 2026, during the 10:15 AM block. Total energy supplied stood at 149,565 MU, with an average daily supply of 4,824 MU. The overall supply position remained stable, with no major shortages reported across regions.

Inter-regional power exchanges continued to support grid balancing. During FY 2025-26 (up to March 2026), total inter-regional transfers reached 253,006 MU. Key corridors included imports by the Northern Region (NR) from the Western Region (WR) and significant exports from WR to the Southern Region (SR). Grid frequency was largely maintained within the operational band, with an average of 50.00 Hz.

The report also highlights several grid events managed during the month. These include the tripping of all four poles of the 800 kV high voltage direct current (HVDC) Agra-Biswanath Chariali link on March 15, along with multiple disturbances in the North Eastern Region’s 132 kV network that caused localised outages. Supply was restored in all cases using standard operating procedures. System reliability indicators showed limited stress, with no transmission corridor exceeding a 1.24% violation rate of Total Transfer Capability (TTC) under (N-1) contingency conditions.

On the infrastructure front, 52 new grid elements were commissioned or charged during March, adding 26,750.5 MVA of transformer capacity. Most additions were in the Southern Region, including new Interconnecting Transformers (ICTs) at substations such as Gadag, Maheswaram, and Ananthapuram.

The featured photograph is for representation only.