The power ministry has officially launched the National Electricity Data Sharing Framework in October 2026, as announced by Minister of State for Power and New & Renewable Energy Shripad Yesso Naik at the valedictory session of the Central Electricity Authority's two-day international conference-cum-exhibition titled 'Making the Indian Power Sector AI Enabled' held on 16 October 2026. As reported by The Hindu, the framework aims to replace the current heavily fragmented, siloed data ecosystem with a unified, standardised digital architecture. The draft framework was released in July this year and focuses on making datasets machine-readable and accessible through secure application programming interfaces (APIs), allowing authorised users to integrate datasets directly into their applications and analytical models.
Speaking at the conclave, Agarwal emphasised the need to scale up artificial intelligence applications across India's power sector. According to The Hindu, the ministry is setting up a national data governance committee led by the chairperson of the Central Electricity Authority comprising government officers and industry representatives to coordinate electricity data sharing. CEA Chairman Ghanshyam Prasad announced that the CEA has constituted a team of 54 officers dedicated to AI and its application in the energy sector, who are trained regularly on AI tools and techniques. The framework will enable electricity-sector entities to classify datasets and share them in consistent formats with other sector participants, researchers, regulators, government agencies and authorised third-party service providers, including startups, subject to applicable access controls and safeguards.
Minister Naik emphasised that AI's success in the power sector will be measured by the improvement it delivers on the ground and not by the sophistication of its algorithm. As reported by The Hindu, he highlighted India's achievement of 50% non-fossil installed capacity in June 2025, five years ahead of its 2030 commitment, and stressed the need to move from building larger power systems to building smarter, more responsive and resilient systems. He asked whether AI can predict equipment failure, forecast solar and wind generation more accurately, help DISCOMs cut losses and restore supply faster, and use every unit of clean energy efficiently. Chairperson of Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) Shri Jishnu Barua cautioned against uncritical acceptance of AI outputs due to hallucination and algorithmic bias, while stressing the real test of AI will be its ability to deploy reliably and responsibly.
Power Minister Manohar Lal highlighted significant growth projections in electricity demand, particularly from data centres. As reported by Business Standard, rising electricity demand from data centres is projected to increase from 1.6 GW to 26 GW over the next six years, which will increase the complexity of grid management and the need for real-time monitoring and execution. Minister of State for Power and New & Renewable Energy Shri Shripad Yesso Naik announced that the Ministry of Power estimates that AI, including data centres, could add 26.5 GW of new demand by 2031-32. The government's target for 2037 includes increasing installed capacity fourfold, with per capita electricity consumption expected to increase 3 times to 4,380 units. At the conclave, Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Jitin Prasada highlighted India's potential to attract hyperscale facilities but cautioned against increasing electricity costs for other consumers.
NITI Aayog's latest report reveals critical water stress challenges that data centre growth must address. According to NITI Aayog, Several groundwater assessment units in Maharashtra are classified as semi-critical, highlighting the urgent need for sustainable water management in data centre operations. The report also notes that Hyderabad's surface water supply dropped 20% during the summer of 2024 due to poor monsoon recharge, forcing the water board to ration supply. Chairperson CERC Shri Jishnu Barua stressed the importance of data sovereignty and careful planning of the water and energy footprint of data centres. These findings underscore the importance of the power ministry's framework in ensuring sustainable electricity demand growth while addressing environmental and water resource concerns.
