Power Hungry: JSW Group plans increased investments in renewables, thermal energy

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JSW Group Chairman and Managing Director Sajjan Jindal anticipates significant growth in the renewables sector as it becomes more economically viable, and has  plans for increased capital investment in both renewables and thermal power in the coming years. Speaking exclusively to Moneycontrol, Jindal said, "I believe that once renewables are both economically viable and green, they will become a critical part of India’s energy future."

The comments come as JSW Energy aims to reach 20 GW of power generation capacity and 40 GWh / 5 GW of energy storage by 2030. The company's overall generation stands at 18.2 GW, including 7.7 GW in operation, 2.1 GW under construction across wind, thermal, and hydro, and an 8.3 GW renewable energy pipeline.

"In the past, when thermal power was at Rs 4 per unit, renewable energy was far more expensive, but with (renewable) prices now coming down to Rs 2.5-3, it’s time to invest... We are investing heavily in solar and wind, especially in dry regions like Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Maharashtra," Jindal said.

Thr group is still exploring the green hydrogen space and is setting up a 25-megawatt plant to see how it performs. "Once hydrogen becomes cost-effective (below $2 per kg), we’ll invest more aggressively," Jindal added.

JSW Energy expects to commission its pilot green hydrogen project in the fourth quarter (March) of this fiscal, Chief Executive Officer Sharad Mahendra had told Moneycontrol in June this year.

Also read:JSW Energy's maiden green hydrogen plant to begin operations in March 2025: CEO

The pilot project has a capacity of 3,800 tonnes a year using 25 MW of renewable electricity. The hydrogen produced will be supplied to JSW Steel's manufacturing facilities through pipelines. JSW Energy has signed a seven-year contract with JSW Steel for supplying green hydrogen and green oxygen to produce green steel.

Further, the company has signed a memorandum of understanding with the steelmaker to supply 90,000 tonnes of green hydrogen, along with 720,000 TPA (tonnes per annum) of green oxygen, by 2030.

Jindal added that the company plans to set up  a 10-million-tonne steel plant as a subsidiary of JSW and bring in other investors.

"The plant will produce green steel, primarily for the western world, since demand for for this in India is still uncertain. Initially, the plant will operate on natural gas, but our goal is to reduce CO2 emissions.  A conventional JSW steel plant emits about two tonnes of CO2 per tonne of crude steel, but with our green plant, we aim to bring this down to 0.6 tonnes per tonne of crude steel. Eventually, as we inject hydrogen, we hope to reduce emissions even further, though the cost of hydrogen may make it a more expensive process," he explained.