Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (PGCIL) is expected to soon commission as many as five interstate transmission system (ISTS) schemes that it was awarded under the tariff-based competitive bidding (TBCB) route.
According to a special study by T&D India based on statistics released by Central Electricity Authority, PGCIL is expected to fully commission five ISTS-TBCB schemes by end of June 2025 or shortly thereafter.
Missing the original deadline
While four of these schemes were originally scheduled to commission last fiscal year, FY25, one scheme is racing towards completion ahead of its scheduled commissioning date.
The four schemes in question are housed under the following TBCB subsidiaries:
- Powergrid ERWR Power Transmission Ltd
- Powergrid Khavda RE Transmission System Ltd
- Powergrid KPS2 Transmission System Ltd
- Powergrid KPS3 Transmission Ltd
Interestingly, three of these four schemes are related to evacuation of renewable energy in Khavda region of Gujarat. These schemes (#2, #3 and #4 above) together envisage around 300 ckm of transmission lines and a significant 10,500 MVA of transformation capacity coming from two pooling stations – KPS2 (6,000 MVA) and KPS3 (4,500 MVA). [KPS is Khavda Pooling Station]
Scheme #1 is an interregional scheme involving the Eastern Region and Western Region grids. The project entails putting up a 400kV double-circuit line from PGCIL’s Jeypore substation in Odisha to the Jagdalpur substation of the state transmission utility of Chhattisgarh.
Ahead of schedule
The scheme that is expected to commission ahead of schedule is incorporated under “Powergrid ER NER Transmission Ltd” and is also an interregional scheme connecting the eastern and northeastern grid. This project entails capacity augmentation at PGCIL’s Banka substation in Bihar and upgrade to 220kV level, from 132kV, of the Namsai substation in Arunachal Pradesh. Both these elements have been completed and the final element – a 220kV double-circuit line from the Namsai substation to NEEPCO’s Kathalguri substation in Assam – is on the verge of completion, rendering full commissioning of the project soon.
Infrastructure addition
The five schemes discussed above will collectively add around 580 ckm of transmission lines and 11,820 MVA of transformation capacity to the interstate grid. With an estimated aggregate outlay of over Rs.3,000 crore, these five ISTS-TBCB schemes will generate combined annual transmission charges (tariff) of around Rs.286 crore.
Overall portfolio
According to estimates made by T&D India, as of June 15, 2025, PGCIL had 46 ISTS-TBCB schemes under construction, together envisaging over 21,000 ckm of transmission lines and nearly 2 lakh MVA of transformation capacity. These include the five schemes discussed in this story. Of these 46 schemes, as many as 26 were awarded in FY25 alone. For more details on the ISTS-TBCB market in FY25, read T&D India’s exclusive report.
As of June 15, 2025, a total of 86 ISTS-TBCB schemes were under execution envisaging aggregate infrastructure creation of around 35,600 ckm of lines and over 3.15 lakh MVA of substation capacity.
Also read: PGCIL to merge 17 TBCB subsidiaries to improve administrative efficiency
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