Power Grid raises FY26 capex to Rs 35,000 crore, exceeds target

Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL) has increased its capital expenditure (capex) guidance for FY26 to Rs 35,000 crore and has already surpassed the target, reporting actual capex of Rs 35,540 crore as of March 22, 2026, or about 102% of the revised estimate.

The company had initially set a capex target of Rs 28,000 crore at the start of FY26. This was revised to Rs 32,000 crore in February 2026 and further raised to Rs 35,000 crore, marking a cumulative increase of 25%. The revisions reflect faster project execution as a significant pipeline of transmission assets approached commissioning during the year.

Capitalisation progress and commissioning details

PGCIL also raised its capitalisation guidance for FY26 to Rs 25,000 crore from an initial Rs 20,000 crore. As of March 22, capitalisation stood at Rs 22,749 crore, or about 91% of the revised target. The company cited execution challenges for the gap, while noting steady progress in commissioning key 765 kV corridors, including Bhadla–Sikar, Khetri–Narela, and Khavda links.

During FY26, PGCIL commissioned 4,239 circuit kilometres of transmission lines, added 60,370 MVA of transformation capacity, and operationalised eight substations. Its gross fixed assets are expected to exceed Rs 3,00,000 crore in FY26, compared to Rs 1,21,000 crore in FY2015–16.

The company has guided for combined capex of about Rs 82,000 crore across FY27 and FY28, with projected capitalisation of around Rs 65,000 crore over the same period. Over the longer term, annual capex and capitalisation are expected to average above Rs 40,000 crore and Rs 35,000 crore respectively through FY36, subject to project awards and tender success rates.

PGCIL currently has works-in-hand exceeding Rs 1,48,000 crore and operates about 84% of India’s inter-state transmission network, covering 1,575 transmission lines across 1,84,434 circuit kilometres.