India plans Rs 900 billion investment in undersea power links to Gulf nations

The Government of India is planning to invest Rs 900 billion in setting up undersea power transmission cables to the Middle East. The proposed investment includes Rs 470 billion for the India–Saudi Arabia interconnection and Rs 430 billion for the India–UAE interconnection.

These sub-sea links are part of a broader regional power integration strategy. Other proposed interconnections include India–Sri Lanka (1,000 MW over 120 km), Odisha (Paradeep)–Andaman (500 MW over 1,150 km), India–Singapore (2,000 MW over 3,000 km), and India–Maldives (400 MW over 750 km).

The Ministry of Power is expected to take a central role in these projects, which are also key to integrating offshore wind energy into the national grid. Offshore wind development is being prioritised along the Tamil Nadu and Gujarat coasts.

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has set a target to auction 37 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2030. To support this, the grid will require around 7,400 km of array cables and 9,250 km of export cables to transmit offshore power.

These efforts align with India’s long-term plan to expand regional grid connectivity and scale up offshore renewable energy.