An overview of the work done by Ratul Puri in the field of renewable energy

AI increases electricity demand through data centres but can improve grid efficiency, cut emissions, boost innovation, and support net-zero goals. In almost every industry worldwide, artificial intelligence has become ubiquitous, including the energy sector. However, AI itself needs massive amounts of energy to operate its programmes. The training and deployment of AI models requires large, power-guzzling data centres. Without electricity, AI systems cannot function. Yet, AI could potentially transform the energy industry by facilitating a reliable, affordable and sustainable supply of electricity. Ratul Puri, chairman of Hindustan Power , an integrated power generation company with a strong presence in renewable and transitional energy generation, added that “AI will play an important role in making energy systems more efficient and stable in the coming years.” Paradoxical Relationship Between Electricity and Data Centres One must understand this link to leverage the benefits of AI a...

As electricity demand continues to increase, Ratul Puri believes that integrated energy systems will become increasingly important in delivering reliable, affordable, and sustainable power across India. India’s power sector is undergoing a significant structural transformation. Increasing industrial activity, expanding digital infrastructure, rapid electrification, and rising energy consumption are reshaping the country’s electricity demand. Peak power demand has reached unprecedented levels and is expected to rise further as manufacturing, artificial intelligence, data centres, and electric mobility become increasingly important contributors to economic growth. The scale of this transformation is already visible in India’s electricity demand. According to the Ministry of Power, the country recorded an all-time peak electricity demand of 256.1 GW on 25 April 2026. This highlights the rapidly expanding scale of India’s power requirements and the need for infrastructure that can support...

This article is authored by Ratul Puri, chairman, Hindustan Power When discussing the creation of an energy-secure India, the conversation often centres around two contrasting factors. One is the country's traditional dependence on coal, while the other is its ambitious push toward clean, renewable energy . However, for a growing nation of more than 1.4 billion people, a nuanced approach is required to maintain a balance between economic growth and India's global climate commitments. Solar and wind energy continue to set new growth benchmarks, but another part of the industrial challenge remains. Agriculture, heavy manufacturing, and chemical refineries cannot operate efficiently on solar power alone because these sectors require high-temperature energy. At the same time, many clean energy components are imported, making the country vulnerable to trade disputes, geopolitical developments, and disruptions in global markets. It is in this context that India's historic coal re...

Uttar Pradesh is steadily expanding its solar energy ecosystem as the state works to make better use of its significant renewable energy potential. Invest UP estimates that the state has nearly 23 GW of solar potential, while installed solar capacity has reached 2,632 MW. Along with utility-scale projects, Uttar Pradesh is also promoting rooftop solar systems and distributed generation to create a more diversified clean energy network. The growth of solar power is becoming visible across different segments of the market. During the second quarter of 2026, Uttar Pradesh ranked among India’s top three states for rooftop solar additions, accounting for 18% of total quarterly installations. According to Mercom India, the state also recorded a 23% year-on-year rise in rooftop solar capacity between Q2 2025 and Q2 2026, showing the increasing adoption of solar energy. Against this backdrop, Hindustan Power’s solar project in Lalitpur has reached a significant milestone. The project was awa...

Q 1. Hindustan Power has been a pioneer in India’s renewable energy sector. Can you take us through the company’s journey and some of the key milestones that have shaped its growth? India’s energy landscape has witnessed a remarkable transformation over the past two decades and Hindustan Power has been an integral part of that journey since its early stages. We entered the renewable energy sector when solar power was still an emerging technology and long before it became a central pillar of India’s energy transition. Some of our early defining achievements include developing India’s first 5 MW solar power project (2010) and Asia’s first 30 MW solar PV project (2011). These projects were important not only because they broke new ground technologically, but because they demonstrated that large-scale renewable energy could be commercially viable and contribute meaningfully to the country’s energy mix. As the sector evolved, so did our vision. We expanded our presence across renewable en...

For more than a decade, Ratul Puri, Chairman of Hindustan Power , has brought conversations around India's energy sector to one of the world's most influential platforms, the World Economic Forum. As a Young Global Leader and an active WEF partner, Ratul Puri has used this platform not only to discuss his company's perspective but also to highlight the wider ambitions and challenges faced by Indian industry as it responds to an energy transition that continues to evolve globally. Global forums such as Davos can sometimes seem far removed from the practical realities of developing infrastructure in emerging markets. However, he has consistently used his participation to connect these two perspectives, bringing the practical challenges of expanding clean energy in India into discussions with global policymakers, investors, and industry peers. This ability to connect detailed industry realities with broader policy discussions has made Ratul Puri a recurring participant in WEF ...

Talk to enough people in India's energy sector and you'll notice something odd: nobody really argues about whether the country can hit its clean energy targets on paper. The panels get built, the projects get announced, the auctions get won. The real trouble starts later, in the boring middle stretch between "project awarded" and "power flowing" — and that's the stretch Ratul Puri keeps coming back to when he talks about what's actually holding India back. His argument is fairly simple, even if the finance world tends to dress it up in jargon: solar parks and transmission lines and battery storage don't pay back on the timelines most capital is looking for. These are projects that take years to build and years more to earn out. And a lot of the money currently chasing India's energy boom behaves more like it's looking for a quick flip than a decade-long bet. Ratul Puri calls this a mismatch, and once you hear it framed that way, it'...