From Water to Watts: Why India’s Future Lies in Floating Infrastructure

India's current water bodies, equipped with floating solar photovoltaics, could generate more than 280 GW of solar energy. This is not mere conjecture. TERI derived this estimate based on just a small portion of India's water bodies.

November 21, 2025. By News Bureau

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articles

Narendra Sujan

Huse Energy

Floating solar photovoltaics

Tengeh Reservoir project

Solar energy

Renewable energy

India is no longer just emerging; it is strategically engineering the next era of global leadership, fundamentally rewriting the economic and environmental paradigms for the world. Leading a remarkable economic surge, the country is also executing the swiftest and boldest clean energy transition in the world. With a focus on a sustainable future, India has established ambitious goals: 500 GW of non-fossil fuel capacity by the end of the year 2030 and a groundbreaking pledge to achieve net-zero emissions by 2070. While land-based solar energy has been the unstoppable force propelling this transformation, it brings forth a significant and immediate contradiction: an essential renewable solution that requires extensive land in a country where every inch is a fiercely contested, limited resource. The question is evident: How can a land-scarce giant realise a land-demanding green vision? To produce 1 MW of capacity, approximately 4 acres of land are necessary. As a result, to achieve the 500 GW goal, the country will need to utilise land equivalent to that of a small state. Thus, it will be essential for the nation to strike a vital balance between energy production, food security, urban development, and the preservation of biodiversity.

India's 280 GW Opportunity

The new energy landscape is taking shape, suggesting that India’s green-energy answer does not lie in its overburdened land terrain but in the "floatovoltaics" of free and unencumbered water bodies, namely, lakes and reservoirs. Historically, these water bodies, along with industrial ponds, have supported India’s water security. Now, however, innovative technologies like “Floatovoltaics” can align them for energy security as well. Floating solar photovoltaics represent a groundbreaking technology that features solar panels installed on floating structures on water surfaces. This technology has been validated and is effective. As a matter of fact, India's current water bodies, equipped with floating solar photovoltaics, could generate more than 280 GW of solar energy. This is not mere conjecture. The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) derived this estimate based on just a small portion of India's water bodies.

Efficiency, Water, and Grids

The advantages of floating solar photovoltaics go well beyond simply saving land. For instance, there is a positive, mutually beneficial interaction with the water bodies themselves. First, the water cools the floating panels and increases their efficiency—initial deployments in India already show a 3-5 percent greater energy output than their land-based counterparts. Secondly, in regions facing water scarcity, the panels offer considerable evaporation relief. For example, the 100 MW Ramagundam project is projected to decrease water loss by more than 3.25 million cubic metres each year. Studies show that floating solar photovoltaic systems can reduce evaporation by 70 percent, which could save billions of litres of water. Additionally, these panels enhance water quality by obstructing sunlight and inhibiting the proliferation of harmful algae. In terms of logistics, floating solar photovoltaics present extraordinary benefits. Many large water reservoirs are already situated at hydropower dams, indicating that the essential grid infrastructure, including substations and transmission lines, is already in place. This significantly reduces both the expenses and the time needed to link solar farms.
Learning from Global Leaders
India is diligently collecting effective strategies from countries with limited land that have successfully adopted this approach. For example, Japan, with a total land area of approximately 378,000 square kilometers, has rapidly deployed floating solar photovoltaic systems on industrial reservoirs, with the 13.7 MW Yamakura Dam project being one of the first. Likewise, Singapore, another densely populated island, has added floating solar photovoltaic systems on its reservoirs, including the 60 MW Tengeh Reservoir project, which is one of the largest inland floating solar farms in the world. Perhaps India’s most relevant example is Thailand, which has implemented the innovative “hydro-floating solar hybrid” system at Sirindhorn Dam. This innovative method allows the solar system to be used during the day to “lock” water in the dam, while the hydropower plant is operated at night or during peak periods to produce hydropower, all while using the same transmission lines. The result is a firm and uninterrupted supply of green dispatchable power 24 hours a day.

Growing from Pilot Projects to Extensive Implementations

India is rapidly moving from pilot to large-scale floating solar photovoltaics projects. Public utilities, such as National Thermal Power Corporation, have built some of the world’s largest floating solar plants, thereby proving the concept's viability on a large scale. The 100 MW NTPC Ramagundam project in Telangana is currently India's largest operational floating solar plant and is a major proof of the concept. Apart from the Ramagundam project, the 600 MW Omkareshwar project on the Narmada River in Madhya Pradesh is one of the world's largest single-site floating solar photovoltaic plants. These programmes help to de-risk the technology and build a local supply chain for floats, anchors, and specialised modules.

Way Ahead

To rapidly ramp up deployment time, the next step in India is the construction of floating solar photovoltaic systems across its extensive network of hydropower projects, ultimately aiming to transform seasonal hydropower into a continuous and reliable source of renewable energy. Moreover, the energy efficiency gains and water savings, along with the entrenched land-use implications, will always tip the balance of the costs and benefits. Ultimately, India can use its floating solar deployed on hydel and irrigation infrastructure to turn its water bodies into renewable energy and water resource generators and help meet the 2030 sustainable development goals. This change in focus from land to water is more than just an opportunity; it is a chance that will transform the economy and the environment at the same time.

- Narendra Sujan, Co-Founder, Huse Energy