Energetica India Magazine

MD & CEO Hinduja Renewables DEEPAK THAKUR Q India’s renewable energy sector has grown rapidly over the last decade. What do you see as the biggest opportuni- ties and challenges for the industry in the years ahead? Deepak Thakur: India has demonstrated that renewable en- ergy can be built at scale. Solar has led that growth, while wind continues to play an important role in creating a more balanced generation profile. Earlier, the priority was to add capacity rapidly and reduce tariffs. That objective has largely been achieved. Today, the conversation is shifting from how much renewable capacity we can build to how effectively we can integrate and utilise it. The real opportunity now lies in delivering dependable clean energy when customers actually need it, rather than simply adding more installed capacity. Procurement is therefore evolving towards hybrid projects, Round-the-Clock (RTC) power, Firm and Dispatchable Renewable Energy (FDRE), and storage-linked solutions. These are not merely new tender structures; they reflect customers’ growing demand for reli - able, schedulable, and predictable renewable power. Commercial and industrial consumers illustrate this shift well. Data centres, for example, require clean power that is also highly reliable. Meeting such requirements will demand stronger integration of renewable generation with storage, forecasting, and grid management. The industry’s growth potential remains significant. Howev - er, land availability, transmission readiness, payment securi- ty, domestic supply-chain quality, financing structures, and faster project execution will determine how much installed renewable capacity can ultimately become dependable oper- ating capacity. Q Round-the-clock renewable energy is becoming increas- ingly important. What will it take to scale RTC projects successfully in India? Deepak Thakur: RTC is becoming essential because renew- able energy must now do more than add green electrons to the grid. It increasingly needs to substitute conventional power in a dependable manner wherever customer load profiles permit. RTC is not a single product. A data centre requires near-con- tinuous clean power with minimal interruption, while a man- ufacturing facility may require supply aligned to production shifts. Utilities and DISCOMs, meanwhile, seek renewable power during peak demand periods. The solution therefore depends on the customer’s operational requirements rather than the technology itself. Solar provides scale, wind complements the generation pro- file, Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) address short - er-duration flexibility, and pumped storage becomes valuable for longer-duration energy shifting. However, customers ul - timately buy reliable outcomes, not individual technologies. Success will depend on planning and operating solar, wind, and storage assets as an integrated portfolio. Accurate fore- I ndia should continue strengthening domestic manufac- turing capabilities across cells, battery packs, battery management systems, recycling and research. Building do - mestic capability is important, but it must evolve alongside competitiveness, quality and continuous innovation, said Deepak Thakur, MD & CEO, Hinduja Renewables, in an in- terview with Energetica India. 30 energetica INDIA- Jul-Aug_2026 INTERVIEW