RE installations scaling at an unprecedented pace

Right now, India’s Renewable Energy (RE) installations are “scaling at an unprecedented pace, but an optimum yield extraction and care of these RE assets hasn’t always kept up,” says Praveen Kakulte, CEO at The POWERCON Group in an exclusive interaction with Bizz Buzz.

Can you describe the current landscape of Renewable Energy Asset Management in India?

Absolutely! Right now, India’s Renewable Energy (RE) installations are scaling at an unprecedented pace, but an optimum yield extraction and care of these RE assets hasn’t always kept up. The RE industry has to switch the outlook to ‘MWhs of Energy delivered’ from its current focus of ‘MWs of Power installed’. That’s where the gap lies. A lot of assets are underperforming due to fragmented O&M practices, lack of data-driven decision-making, and insufficient technical training on ground. At POWERCON, we see Asset Management as both a challenge and an opportunity, to bring in deeper accountability, smarter diagnostics, and most importantly, outcomes that investors, developers, and the planet can count upon.

What difference does it make when a third party like POWERCON manages the asset operations rather than OEM players themselves?

The difference is the goal that each player has. OEM’s goal is to deliver great and more products. IPP/Asset Owner’s goal is to deliver ‘Maximum Electricity’. Third-party Asset Managers like POWERCON are synchronised with the IPPs to deliver ‘Maximum Electricity’ and ‘A Healthy and Longer life-time of the Asset’.

We are technology agnostic; we hold the asset performance measureable to output, not just uptime. Our role is to optimise across the entire energy delivery chain, integrate multi-locational data from multiple OEMs, and ensure the investor gets the projected returns. It’s not about maintaining equipment; it’s about unlocking performance. The goal synchronisation of third party Asset Manager with IPP is greater, deeper and enriching. That’s where the real value lies.

How do you see the evolution of Asset Management needs with India targeting 500 GW of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030?

The scale alone demands a fundamental shift. We’re not talking about managing a few parks anymore, we’re talking about orchestrating a national ecosystem of assets across diverse geographies, OEMs, and performance profiles. As we move toward the 500 GW goal, Asset Management must evolve from the current fragmented O&M to an integrated singular framework serving every aspect of the asset lifecycle, from daily operations to strategic governance for performance, transparency, and long-term value creation. A shift from reactive maintenance to predictive/ insight-led operations as well as the enforcement of forecasting, scheduling and regulating power dispatch for optimum gain necessitates IT enabled energy management. That’s where POWERCON’s Energy Studio plays a crucial role, it acts as the nerve center for real-time diagnostics, performance benchmarking, and remote optimisation.

Combined with AI-driven analytics and a future-ready workforce trained through our In-house Training Academy, we’re building an ecosystem that’s beyond maintaining energy assets, it maximises their life and output. In the next phase of India’s renewable journey, Intelligent Asset Management will be as critical as energy generation itself, and POWERCON is geared to lead that shift.

Are you integrating predictive maintenance through IT or AI Technologies? How effective has it been?

Yes, and we wouldn’t be future-ready if we weren’t. Predictive maintenance isn’t a buzzword for us, it’s embedded in how we operate. Through our Energy Studio, we’ve integrated AI-driven diagnostics and Machine Learning algorithms that flag anomalies before they become failures. Our partner BaxEnergy’s platform ‘Farsight’ predicts failures by using Machine Learning/ Data Analytics. It also integrates meteorological data to help pre-empt and plan for environmental conditions.

The results speak for themselves: we’ve seen up to 16% reduction in downtime and a measurable improvement in asset life and generation consistency. The key is combining on-ground insights with digital intelligence, and that’s where our tech stack and experienced teams complement each other. For IPPs and Asset Owners, this translates into higher PLFs and fewer surprises.

Can you tell us about your current asset portfolio in India, including capacity under management, project types, and key geographies, and how it has evolved over the years?

Today, POWERCON manages over 2.5 GW of Renewable Energy assets across India, spanning wind, solar, hybrid, and exclusive BoP projects. Our portfolio covers the key renewable belts in Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Karnataka, where we support a diverse mix of utility-scale, IPP, and captive installations.

We started with wind O&M nearly a decade ago, and since then, our evolution has been strategic, from technology-specific services to multi-OEM, multi-technology Asset Management, powered by our Energy Studio and Advanced Analytics. Our differentiator from Day 1 has been to keep turbines spinning optimally, remote diagnostics, and predictive maintenance, and that’s where we bring real value.

Which major developers or IPPs do you currently work with, and how are you planning to expand your client base as India’s renewable capacity scales up rapidly?

We work with some of the most trusted names in the Renewable Energy sector, including TATA, ReNew, Apraava, O2, Serentica, CIP, Adani, SJVN, Sembcorp, Aditya Birla, NTPC, and other leading IPPs and infrastructure funds. These long-standing relationships are a testament to our delivery, transparency, and ability to adapt to evolving industry needs.

As India races toward its 500 GW target, our growth strategy is centered on innovation, application specific offerings and Difficult To Get (D2G) solutions.

With our global footprint across 22 countries, we bring international best practices to India, while POWERCON’s RE ecosystem ensures we’re future-ready.

As countries race toward Net-Zero targets, what role can Hybrid Renewable Energy models (e.g., combining wind, solar, and storage) play in building energy resilience?

Hybrid Renewable Energy models are the backbone of a resilient, low-carbon future. By integrating wind, solar, and storage, we smoothen the intermittency challenge and maximise generation across timeframes and weather conditions. AI-enabled Energy Management System not only ensure grid stability but also enhance asset productivity and land-use efficiency. As storage becomes more cost-effective, hybrid systems will play a key role in peak load management, frequency regulation, and ensuring round-the-clock renewable power, critical for both national energy security and energy independence!

EoM.