Canals Offer Land-Free Solar Power Potential for India

UPDATE - follow-up to India's vast canal network offers a land-free path to solar power: India's expansive canal networks are emerging as a vital land-free option for expanding solar energy capacity through canal-top photovoltaics. The technology mounts solar panels on elevated structures built over existing irrigation and water-supply canals, requiring virtually no additional land acquisition. A 1-MW system installed over the Narmada Canal in Mehsana, Gujarat, in 2012 saves close to 9 million litres of water annually while generating 1.6 million units of electricity. Subsequent installations include 10-MW systems commissioned in Vadodara between 2014 and 2017, and 20 MW of systems set up in Punjab between 2017 and 2018 that saved nearly 100 acres of land.

Expansion Plans And Potential

Recent policy moves point to growing interest in the sector. In September 2025, the Punjab Energy Development Agency invited expressions of interest for 40-MW canal-top solar projects across more than 10,000 kilometres of canals, while Haryana has also begun exploring similar systems across six irrigation canals. A 2024 assessment co-authored by Shantanu Roy, Sector Coordinator at the Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy, estimated India's total canal-top and canal-bank solar potential at around 131 GW. The five states holding the highest potential are Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Punjab. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy previously launched a pilot scheme in 2014 offering financial assistance of up to Rs 3 crore per MW for canal-top systems.

Challenges Facing Deployment

Despite this large technical potential, growth has remained limited due to several hurdles. High system costs form the primary bottleneck, as elevated structures require sturdy designs, additional structural steel, and foundations that do not disrupt water flow. Maintenance tasks like cleaning and repairs remain difficult over working canals, and irregular canal paths can raise electricity transmission costs. Experts note that overcoming these structural challenges requires tailored financing mechanisms, viability gap funding, and standardised guidelines to help scale deployment.