Extreme heat to test India's power and water supply this summer

NEW DELHI – Rising temperatures and forecasts of more hot days in 2026 are expected to put fresh pressure on India’s electricity and water systems, new research shows, highlighting how extreme heat is increasingly straining the country’s infrastructure.

The India Meteorological Department warns many parts of the country could see more hot days than average this summer.

Researchers at the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), a Delhi-based policy think-tank, said intensifying heat was already driving spikes in electricity demand for cooling while also increasing pressure on urban water supplies.

The rising demand for electricity comes at a time when India, which imports some 90 per cent of its oil and 60 per cent of its gas, is already struggling to meet its energy needs due to the Iran war.

Heatwaves are not just a health crisis, but also a stress test for India’s electricity grid and urban water systems.

Record temperatures expected

In 2024, the hottest year on record in India, electricity demand hit a peak of about 250 gigawatts in May, leading to power outages across the country.

The peak demand was about 4 per cent lower in 2025, nearly 240 gigawatts in early June.

Researchers said India’s power demand in 2026 is already exceeding projections as hot weather arrived earlier than usual after the world recorded its fifth warmest February on record.

Cooling already accounts for about 20 per cent of India’s peak electricity demand, the International Energy Agency said.

Peak electricity demand could rise to around 260 gigawatts this summer due to unusually warm weather, said Ms Disha Agrawal, senior programme lead at CEEW.

That level of demand is larger than the entire electricity generation capacity of many mid-sized countries.

India has about 500 gigawatts of installed power generation capacity, roughly half from non-fossil sources, led by solar and wind, with also hydro and nuclear power.

But non-fossil sources generate only about a quarter of the country’s electricity as solar and wind produce power intermittently, while coal plants run continuously and dominate the power supply.

While gas accounts for only around 2 per cent of its total power generation, ​India uses about 8 gigawatts of gas power during peak-demand periods or heatwaves.

To meet the peak summer demand at a time of geopolitical instability, the Indian government has asked coal plants to run at full capacity and defer maintenance, while it plans to use renewable energy to supply daytime needs.

Clean energy goals

The variability of renewable power, limited battery storage and ageing grids remain major challenges for India’s electricity system, researchers said, adding that extreme heat could further strain infrastructure.

“Scaling clean energy quickly will be critical to meeting India’s rising power demand reliably and affordably,” said Ms Agrawal.

India may need to scale up to about 600 gigawatts of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030 if electricity demand continues to grow faster than projected, she added.

Extreme heat is also intensifying pressure on India’s water systems, particularly in cities where freshwater supplies are limited.

India currently treats only about 28 per cent of the wastewater it generates, according to the Central Pollution Control Board, leaving most cities without functioning systems to reuse treated water for industry, agriculture or other non-drinking purposes.

India could reuse more than 31,000 million cubic metres of treated wastewater annually by 2047 if supported by investment and policy reforms, said Mr Nitin Bassi, fellow at CEEW. This is equivalent to about 30 times’ yearly water consumption in Delhi.

“Scaling treated wastewater reuse is one of the most practical ways to water-secure Indian cities,” he added.

Several states and cities have begun preparing for rising heat and water demand.

In Delhi, the authorities have expanded tanker fleets, monitoring systems and emergency water centres as part of a summer action plan aimed at addressing seasonal shortages and rising consumption.

Climate change is reshaping heat patterns across the country. More than half of India’s districts, home to about 76 per cent of the population, are vulnerable to extreme heat, according to a CEEW study in 2025. REUTERS