India Energy Stack: A Digital Public Infrastructure for the Future

 

Transforming India’s Power Sector through the India Energy Stack: A Digital Public Infrastructure for the Future

Author: R. Kannan Corporate and Economic Advisor | Member, Harvard Business Review Editorial Council

Abstract

India’s energy sector stands at the confluence of rapid demand escalation, ambitious decarbonization commitments, and a once-in-a-generation opportunity to redefine public infrastructure through digital innovation. The India Energy Stack (IES) emerges as a pioneering Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) intended to address long-standing inefficiencies across the power value chain while laying the technological and institutional foundation for a resilient, inclusive, and intelligent energy ecosystem. This paper articulates the vision, architecture, and strategic execution pathway for the IES, drawing inspiration from India’s digital achievements in identity and payments. It explores the challenges of legacy infrastructure, cybersecurity, data privacy, and regulatory harmonization—while also illuminating the massive opportunity for global digital leadership, market innovation, and consumer empowerment. The IES is not merely a technology platform—it is a shift in governance philosophy for the 21st-century energy transition.

1. Introduction: Digitizing the Lifeblood of a Rising Economy

India’s energy sector, once defined by under-electrification and inefficiencies, now faces the reverse challenge: managing abundance, variability, and scale. By 2035, India is projected to account for the fastest-growing primary energy demand among G20 nations. Meeting this demand in a sustainable, inclusive, and secure manner requires breaking away from siloed planning and static operations.

Enter the India Energy Stack (IES)—a DPI designed to replicate the success of Aadhaar (digital identity), UPI (payments), and Account Aggregator (data consent). Through standardized APIs, real-time data flows, unique digital identifiers, and layered analytics, the IES seeks to modernize grid operations, democratize energy access, and foster innovation on a national scale.

2. India’s Energy Landscape: Legacy Foundations in Transition

2.1 A Fossil-Dominated Mix and Structural Complexity

As of mid-2025, fossil fuels still power 78% of India’s electricity generation, with coal contributing over 64% to rising demand. While coal is domestically abundant, India remains heavily reliant on imports for petroleum and liquefied natural gas—leaving the energy economy exposed to global market volatility.

Natural gas plays a modest role (under 7%) but offers growth potential in urban mobility and industrial heating. Biomass use continues in rural cooking and heating but is gradually replaced by LPG and electricity.

2.2 Infrastructure, Finance, and Governance Bottlenecks

Despite accelerated generation capacity, India’s grid continues to struggle with high AT&C (Aggregate Technical and Commercial) losses, especially across state-run DISCOMs. Issues range from poor metering to billing inefficiencies, legacy IT systems, and slow grievance redressal. Regulatory fragmentation across centre and states further compounds decision latency, discouraging private investment in innovation.

3. Renewable and Nuclear Energy: Scaling the Clean Transition

3.1 Clean Energy Trajectory

India has achieved remarkable growth in non-fossil energy—installing 226.9 GW of renewable energy and 8.8 GW of nuclear power by mid-2025. Solar is the dominant contributor, with rooftop and agricultural solar schemes (e.g., PM-KUSUM and PM-Surya Ghar) driving inclusive growth. Wind capacity has also doubled over a decade, now exceeding 51 GW.

India is now the world’s third-largest generator of wind and solar electricity, surpassing Germany in 2024. Large hydropower accounts for about 9% of clean power capacity.

3.2 Nuclear Energy: Strategic Expansion with Innovation

With a target of 100 GW by 2047, nuclear energy is poised to be India’s clean base-load alternative. Beyond conventional reactors, government-backed programs are investing in Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) and thorium-fuel cycles—leveraging India’s domestic resources and research capabilities. The creation of “Bharat Small Reactors” (BSRs) and the Union Budget’s “Nuclear Energy Mission” represent foundational steps toward a diversified, low-carbon energy future.

4. The India Energy Stack: Vision, Scope, and Institutional Intention

The India Energy Stack is not a single application but a comprehensive, modular architecture that unifies digital identities, real-time data exchange, analytics engines, consumer applications, and regulatory interfaces into a single interoperable framework.

4.1 Design Principles

• Open by Default: Built using open standards (e.g., CIM, IEC 61850), enabling vendor neutrality.
• Consent-Driven: Inspired by DEPA and Account Aggregator models, consumer control over data is central.
• Interoperable: API-first approach ensures seamless integration across legacy and modern platforms.
• Modular and Scalable: Designed to evolve with emerging technologies, from AI to quantum cryptography.

4.2 Functional Scope

• Foundational Registries: Unique digital IDs for energy consumers, grid assets, and transactions.
• Unified Communication Layer: Open APIs with standardized data models to enable secure data flow.
• Analytics Engine (UIP): AI-driven forecasting, anomaly detection, and asset optimization.
• Consumer Services: Digital billing, real-time consumption insights, grievance redressal, and portability.
• Innovation Layer: Developer sandbox, peer trading modules, EV-grid coordination, and new market models.

5. Systemic Benefits and National Value Creation

5.1 Technical and Operational Efficiencies

• Real-time grid management through smart meters and digital twins.
• Loss reduction and demand forecasting, minimizing network overloads.
• Predictive maintenance, extending asset life and reducing unplanned outages.

5.2 Empowered and Informed Consumers

• Access to detailed usage analytics, alerts, and budget tools.
• Participation in dynamic pricing and demand response (DR) programs.
• Energy service portability and improved customer support.

5.3 DISCOM Financial Viability

• Accurate billing and digital collections reduce revenue leakage.
• Data-driven power procurement improves margin management.
• Centralized grievance tracking ensures faster resolution and trust.

5.4 Ecosystem Innovation and Market Deepening

• Peer-to-peer trading, virtual power plants (VPPs), and decentralized marketplaces.
• Support for energy-as-a-service (EaaS) and DER aggregation businesses.
• Boost to cleantech startups through standardized data access and APIs.

5.5 Policy Agility and Governance Intelligence

• Granular insights for regulatory design, subsidy targeting, and real-time compliance.
• Simulation models for planning transmission upgrades and RE integration scenarios.
• Climate-smart planning for distribution infrastructure in vulnerable geographies.

6. Roadblocks to Realization: Implementation Complexities

6.1 Institutional and Technical Fragmentation

• Siloed IT systems across DISCOMs, GENCOs, and SLDCs.
• Lack of universally adopted data standards and registries.

6.2 Cybersecurity and Data Privacy

• Increasing cyber threats to OT and IT layers demand zero-trust architecture.
• Consent architecture and compliance with India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDP Act, 2023) are non-negotiable.

6.3 Human Capital Gaps

• Low digital literacy among DISCOM field staff and rural consumers.
• Need for retraining programs across engineering, billing, and consumer service domains.

6.4 Regulatory and Fiscal Friction

• Inconsistent state-level regulations for digital investments.
• Funding constraints in financially distressed utilities limit digital adoption.

7. Strategic Roadmap: Phased Execution to Full Stack Maturity

7.1 Policy and Governance Foundation

• National Digital Energy Policy under Ministry of Power to provide statutory clarity.
• Legislation to formally establish National Energy Digital Authority (NEDA) with full-time CEO and zonal offices.

7.2 Technical Infrastructure Deployment

• Creation of secure, scalable Consumer ID and Asset ID registries.
• Rollout of API Gateway, Data Lake, and Consent Management System.
• Adoption of Common Information Model (CIM) across all digital interfaces.

7.3 Early-Stage Proof of Concepts (PoCs)

• Diverse DISCOMs across demographics, renewable load, and digital readiness to serve as pilots.
• Metrics include AT&C loss reduction, grievance resolution time, and renewable integration reliability.

7.4 Workforce and Consumer Enablement

• Digital training through ITIs, engineering colleges, and on-the-job DISCOM workshops.
• Mass communication campaigns in vernacular languages to build public awareness.

7.5 Innovation Promotion and Funding

• Establishment of Energy Innovation Sandbox for third-party developers.
• Blended finance instruments, including green bonds, to fund national rollout.
• Performance-linked incentives for DISCOMs based on digital KPIs.

8. The Five-Layered Digital Architecture of IES

8.1 Foundational Layer

• ECIDs for all consumers, integrated with Aadhaar/KYC standards.
• Asset IDs aligned to IEC 61968 for transformers, meters, and RE installations.
• Immutable transaction IDs for metering, payments, and grid operations.

8.2 Interoperability and Exchange Layer

RESTful APIs, secured through OAuth 2.0 and role-based access controls, will enable standardized, real-time communication between legacy systems, modern cloud-native applications, and third-party services. A dedicated API Gateway will manage authentication, throttling, and access logging.

• Common Information Model (CIM) compliance ensures semantic consistency in data interpretation.
• Message queues and event-streaming platforms (e.g., Apache Kafka) will handle high-frequency data like smart meter readings and grid anomalies.

8.3 Analytics and Utility Intelligence Platform (UIP)

The UIP acts as the computational brain of the IES.

• AI/ML engines will forecast load, detect anomalies (e.g., power theft, line faults), and optimize dispatch.
• Digital twins replicate grid infrastructure to simulate stress scenarios or plan upgrades.
• Visualization dashboards will serve regulators, DISCOMs, and policymakers with tailored KPIs and insights.

8.4 Application and Ecosystem Layer

This topmost layer enables service delivery, innovation, and stakeholder interaction.

• Consumer apps offer real-time billing, usage comparisons, and participation in green energy programs.
• DISCOMs benefit from tools for field-force management, predictive maintenance, and outage restoration.
• Developers can create new services via open APIs and access anonymized data in a secure Innovation Sandbox.
• Peer-to-peer marketplaces, EV smart charging systems, and local energy communities will flourish through modular plug-ins.

8.5 Governance, Security, and Consent Layer

This horizontal layer ensures compliance and resilience:

• Cybersecurity protocols, incident response systems, and hardware-level endpoint protection.
• Consent architecture ensures all data flows are user-permitted, auditable, and revocable at any time.
• Regulatory dashboards will monitor market behaviour, subsidy leakages, and systemic vulnerabilities.

9. Organizational Design: The National Energy Digital Authority (NEDA)

To anchor the IES, the proposed NEDA must combine autonomy, cross-functional expertise, and agile decision-making.

9.1 Structural Blueprint

• Chairperson and Governing Board: Strategic oversight, budget approvals, and national representation.
• CEO: Executive authority for program management, inter-agency coordination, and stakeholder engagement.
• Divisional Heads: Oversee core units—Identity & Registry, Platform Architecture, Cybersecurity, Analytics, Legal, Consumer Affairs, Finance & HR.

9.2 Zonal Presence and Sectoral Integration

• Regional offices for North, South, East, West, and Northeast India to ensure geographic equity.
• Sectoral advisory groups representing DISCOMs, renewable developers, EV operators, and consumer rights organizations.

9.3 Culture and Principles

• Digital-first operations, paperless administration, and agile procurement.
• Embedded transparency and public engagement practices, modelled after UIDAI and NPCI.
• A public grievance platform integrated with the IES itself.

10. India’s Global Opportunity: Benchmarking a New Energy Governance Model

By executing IES effectively, India has the potential to:

• Export the IES model to emerging economies in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, particularly those pursuing SDG 7 goals.
• Lead global discussions on energy DPI standards, cyber norms, and decentralized governance.
• Anchor itself as a cleantech innovation hub, attracting startups and investors seeking interoperable, secure energy markets.

Just as UPI has set digital finance benchmarks globally, IES could become the blueprint for energy digitalization at scale, particularly in data-rich but infrastructure-fragmented economies.

11. Conclusion: Laying the Cables for a New Social Contract

The India Energy Stack is more than a technological layer—it is an architectural re-imagination of the social contract in electricity provisioning. It aims to position electricity not merely as a commodity but as a digitally mediated right—inclusive, transparent, and intelligent.

Realizing this vision requires:

• Sustained political resolve and cross-government coordination.
• Robust institutional capacity and agile bureaucracy.
• Strategic public investment followed by open innovation.

If India delivers on this frontier, it will not only energize its billion-plus citizens with greater dignity and choice, but also shine a light for the world on how to digitalize development—cleanly, inclusively, and securely.