Modi Says India Will Add 500 GW Renewable Capacity Over Next Decade at Bharat RE Summit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Bharat Renewable Energy Summit and Expo 2026 at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on the afternoon of November 2 and told the gathering that India will add roughly 500 GW of renewable energy capacity over the next 10 to 11 years. He said the country already has nearly 300 GW of non-fossil installed capacity and remains on track for its earlier 500 GW target by 2030.

The four-day event runs from November 2 to 5 under the theme “Invest. Innovate. Inspire.” Organizers expect participants from more than 130 countries, including more than 40 ministers. Nine countries and the European Union are listed as country partners: Australia, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the EU. Thirteen Indian states and union territories are showcasing investment opportunities and manufacturing capacity.

Modi said India’s economic growth has remained high despite the crisis in West Asia. He attributed part of that resilience to investments in clean energy infrastructure over the past decade. The clean energy sector, he said, can offer investment opportunities exceeding Rs 20 lakh crore, or about USD 220 billion, by the end of the decade. India has already attracted more than Rs 15 lakh crore in renewable investments over the past ten years, including about Rs 6 lakh crore since the 2024 RE-INVEST summit.

The government has allocated Rs 2 lakh crore for the second phase of the Green Energy Corridor. Modi noted that more than 44,000 government buildings have been connected to solar systems, producing annual savings of about Rs 700 crore. He described clean power as central to future energy security and said the combination of generation, transmission, manufacturing, and storage creates a large pipeline for capital.

The summit runs in parallel with the 9th Session of the International Solar Alliance Assembly and the 4th International Conference on Green Hydrogen. Officials from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy have stated that reaching the 500 GW non-fossil target will require accelerated deployment of storage and stronger transmission networks alongside continued capacity additions. Current non-fossil capacity stands at approximately 308 GW according to recent ministry figures cited at the event.

Modi invited investors to commit capital, citing policy continuity and the scale of the domestic market. The 500 GW addition over the coming decade is presented as a separate, longer-term expansion beyond the 2030 milestone. Whether storage costs, grid integration, and land and transmission bottlenecks allow that pace remains the operational test for the sector after the speeches conclude.

The inauguration drew industry leaders, financiers, and technology suppliers. Sessions over the next three days will focus on specific project pipelines, manufacturing localization, and green hydrogen offtake. The numbers Modi cited place the current investment stock and the projected opportunity in concrete rupee and dollar terms rather than general targets.