Mapping India's renewable energy growth potential: status and outlook 2013

India has the fifth-largest power generation portfolio worldwide. The country transitioned from being the world’s seventh-largest energy consumer in 2000 to the fourth-largest one within a decade. This rapid growth of power capacity and a subsequent rise in demand can be attributed to several factors: Economic growth and increasing prosperity; Growing rate of urbanization; Rising per capita energy consumption; and Widening access to energy in the country. Power generation from renewable sources is on the rise in India, with the share of renewable energy in the country’s total energy mix rising from 7.8% in FY08 to 12.3% in FY13. Wind accounts for 68% of the capacity, with 19.1 GW of installed capacity, making India the world’s fifth largest wind energy producer. Small hydro power (3.6 GW), bio-energy (3.6 GW) and solar energy (1.7 GW) constitute the remaining capacity.