Cabinet Approves ₹5,070-Crore Scheme to Boost Floating Solar Power Projects

The Union Cabinet has approved the Pradhan Mantri Surya Sarovar Yojana (PM-SSY), a ₹5,070-crore initiative aimed at accelerating floating solar power projects across reservoirs and water bodies while expanding India’s clean energy capacity.

The Union Cabinet has approved the Pradhan Mantri Surya Sarovar Yojana (PM-SSY), a ₹5,070-crore scheme designed to promote floating solar power projects across India’s reservoirs, lakes, and other water bodies. The initiative seeks to diversify the country’s renewable energy infrastructure while addressing challenges associated with land availability for conventional solar installations.

Under the scheme, developers will receive Central Financial Assistance (CFA) of up to ₹1 crore per megawatt (MW) for eligible floating solar projects. The programme will be implemented by the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) and aims to accelerate investments in a segment that remains largely untapped despite significant technical potential.

India currently has an installed floating solar capacity of approximately 0.7 gigawatts (GW), compared with an estimated technical potential of nearly 102 GW. The government expects the new incentive to encourage wider adoption of floating solar technology and reduce the concentration of solar development in a few land-rich states.

A key feature of the scheme is the mandatory integration of battery energy storage systems. Projects receiving financial assistance will be required to include storage capacity equivalent to at least two hours of generation, contributing to a cumulative battery storage capacity of around 10,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) under the programme. The requirement is expected to improve grid reliability and help manage the intermittent nature of solar power generation.

The initiative also seeks to overcome one of the major limitations of ground-mounted solar projects—land acquisition. Conventional solar parks require large contiguous land parcels, often leading to higher acquisition costs and rehabilitation challenges. By utilising existing reservoirs and water bodies, floating solar projects can generate clean energy without placing additional pressure on agricultural land or ecologically sensitive areas.

The country’s largest floating solar project, located at Omkareshwar Reservoir in Madhya Pradesh, currently has an installed capacity of 278 MW, with plans to expand to 600 MW. While the project demonstrates the viability of floating solar technology at scale, it does not currently incorporate on-site battery storage, a feature that will become mandatory under the new scheme for supported projects.

The government views the financial assistance as a catalyst for developing a stronger floating solar ecosystem rather than a permanent subsidy. Expanding solar generation across reservoir-rich states could help diversify India’s renewable energy footprint while supporting the country’s broader clean energy transition and long-term climate commitments.