New Delhi: At a time when China has started construction on one of the world’s largest dams on the Brahmaputra river in Tibet, India has readied a masterplan of a comprehensive transmission system to evacuate hydropower to the tune of approximately 65 GW from the Brahmaputra basin.
According to the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), the Brahmaputra basin has the potential to harness 64,945 MW (approximately 65 GW) hydropower including projects above 25 MW capacity). Of this total potential, 4,807 MW hydropower capacity exists while 2,000 MW capacity is under construction.
The CEA unveiled the Master Plan for Evacuation of Power from Hydroelectric plants in Brahmaputra Monday. It envisages development of 31,000 circuit kilometre (a unit of length for power transmission lines that accounts for the number of circuits on a tower of transmission lines), 68 Gigavolt-Ampere (measures the power handling capacity of substations and transformers) of transformation capacity and 42 Giga Watt of HVDC (High Voltage Direct Current) in two timeframes—up to 2035 and beyond 2035.
The CEA has estimated an expenditure of Rs 6.42 lakh crore to put in place the required transmission system, which will include new as well as augmentation of transmission systems at existing substations.
The Brahmaputra river rises in the Kailash ranges of the Himalayas, east of Lake Mansarovar. Traversing about 300 km in Tibet, where it is called the Yarlung Tsangpo, the river enters India near Shirang in Arunachal Pradesh. Here, it is known as Siang. Along with Siang and other tributaries, including Dibang and Lohit, the river flows through Arunachal Pradesh and Assam before entering Bangladesh. It joins the Ganga at Golandu in the neighbouring country. Near Golandu, the Brahmaputra is known as Jamuna up to Golandu and thereafter Padma.
In India, the Brahmaputra basin is divided into 12 sub-basins out of which Dibang, Siang, Lohit, Subansiri, Kameng, Teesta and Barak are considered as major sub-basins.
The master plan, according to CEA officials, will provide visibility to developers of the hydroelectric projects in Brahmaputra basin regarding evacuation of power.
“Given the vast hydro potential to the tune of 65 GW in 12 sub-basins of the Brahmaputra basin, the need for a comprehensive transmission system to evacuate power from these hydroelectric projects became critical. In response, a Master Plan for Evacuation of Power from Hydroelectric Plants in the Brahmaputra basin has been developed,” CEA member (power systems) Vijay Kumar Singh wrote in the foreword of the report.
Keeping in view the implementation time frame of hydroelectric plants, the phasing of the transmission system has been done in two time frames i.e. up to 2035 and beyond 2035.
To counter China’s hydropower dam projects over the Brahmaputra in Tibet, India has proposed an 11,200 MW Upper Siang multipurpose project in Arunachal Pradesh. But the project remains delayed with stiff opposition from locals. The Centre has not been able to identify the dam site yet amid stiff opposition from the people over its adverse impact on the environment and their livelihoods.
The peak electricity demand of the seven north-east region (NER) states by the year 2036-37 is expected to be 9 GW. As of March 2025, the total Installed generating capacity in NER was 5,516 MW and most of the generation comes from hydro and gas plants.
A November 2022 CEA report ‘Reassessment of Hydroelectric Potential in the Country’ had assessed that in Brahmputra basin, there is exploitable potential for 206 large hydroelectric projects with a total exploitable hydro potential of 62,726.7 MW.
The North East Regional Electricity Grid covers the state of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura.
Overall, the total installed capacity in India as on 31st March, 2025 from renewable energy sources was 172.37 GW. The total renewable installed capacity comprises 50 GW of wind, 105.65 GW of solar, and 11.58 GW of bio-power and waste power and 5.1 GW of small hydro plants.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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