India: Oil, Gas & Electricity

Why AI's energy, carbon and resource footprint now belongs in the sustainability conversation.

This comprehensive newsletter examines pivotal judicial rulings and regulatory developments reshaping India's infrastructure, energy, and natural resources sectors.

The common requirements for Renewable Energy Power Plants (“REP”) and BESS include equipment rating norms, mandatory site documentation, display boards, WMO-compliant automatic weather stations (for plants of 10 MW and above), phasor measurement units, harmonic analysers, power plant controllers, redundant communication systems, power quality meters, graded protection systems, voltage ride-through capability, and compliance with the National Building Code and applicable noise limits.

By a notification dated May 18, 2026, the Ministry of Power brought into force, from June 1, 2026, the Jan Vishwas Act amendments under Schedule Serial No. 58. Consequently, certain provisions of the Electricity Act, 2003 stand amended.

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has operationalised the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) framework for solar PV cells with effect from 1 June 2026, thereby completing the two-tier sourcing structure that the ALMM regime had originally envisaged. While the framework, when introduced in 2019, contemplated approved lists for both solar PV modules and solar PV cells, implementation was initially confined to only solar modules, due to limited domestic cell manufacturing capacity at that time.

The long-term stability of India’s power sector depends not only on generation capacity and infrastructure growth, but also on the legal and regulatory certainty governing fuel supply arrangements. Power Purchase Agreements (“PPAs”), particularly those executed through competitive bidding under the Electricity Act, 2003, are structured on commercial assumptions relating to the long-term availability, pricing, and sourcing of coal.

The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (“CERC”), vide order dated April 15, 2026, has proposed a procedure for levy of compensation charges to permit additional time for achieving key project milestones under the connectivity and General Network Access (“GNA”) framework (“Draft GNA Procedure”).

The Government of India is implementing the National Green Hydrogen Mission (“NGHM”), with an objective to make India a global hub of production, usage and export of green hydrogen and its derivatives. A global demand of over 100 (hundred) million metric tonnes of green hydrogen and its derivatives is expected to emerge by 2030.

This comprehensive legal update examines critical regulatory developments and judicial decisions shaping India's electricity sector, including landmark Supreme Court rulings on deemed distribution licensee status, APTEL judgments on tariff determination and captive power arrangements, and significant commission orders addressing renewable energy procurement, change in law compensation, and transmission charge disputes.