Coal India’s solar capex target rises 132%, logging 2.33 times growth
New Delhi: India’s largest Coal Producing PSU, Coal India Ltd has recently shares a capital investment structure on its solar power sector with capacity addition and prompting as a green or renewable energy source. The company has been focusing a paradigm shift to scale-up the capital expenditure on solar initiatives up to Rs 961 crores by the end of January 2026. This would have expected to rise by 132% of gross target as compared to Rs 729 crores till January 2026. While, this has been a big remarkable achievement as this has surpassed the FY26 capex target which was estimated around Rs 957 crores, specifically for the solar projects. On a yearly basis, the capex target has surged more than double with around 2.33 times against Rs 412 crores till January 2026. The cost of setting up 1 MW of Solar capacity, currently ranges around Rs 4 crores to Rs 4.5 crore which is slightly low from earlier Rs 5.5 crores to Rs 6 crores per MW.
“Solar power lists high on CIL’s diversification portfolio. Among the cleaner energy sources solar will play a pivotal role in future and we are laying the groundwork to remain relevant in the country’s energy sector. We are actively participating in solar auctions, as well.” said a senior executive of the company.
The PSU company is mulling for Net-Zero entity through installation of 3,000 MW of renewable solar capacity by FY 2028. Coal India Ltd along with its subsidiaries have set up renewable energy capacity installation of around 247 MW till December 2025, is expected to rise up to 675 MW by the current financial year. The upcoming capacity addition includes two major solar power projects in Gujarat, 100 MW in Patan and 300 MW in Khavda.
Coal India Ltd along with these projects, is looking forward for 2,000 MW of RE capacity soon through its subsidiaries and joint ventures.
The first one is 875 MW plant with Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Limited and the other is a 500 MW capacity plant through Uttar Pradesh Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Limited in phased manner. Further bids have been invited for 20 MW floating solar plant in Gorakhpur. Additionally, the PSU company is taking part in Tariff-Based Competitive Bidding (TBCB) tenders for solar power development across multiple states. Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) is also on the company’s radar.