India to test gas-fired power generators as plants to address high demand

India has an ambitious goal of installing 175 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2022

India will test a plan to operate its underutilized natural gas-fired power generators as “peaker” plants that can switch on quickly when there’s high demand, according to the country’s power planning body.

The project will start with four NTPC Ltd. plants with a combined capacity of 2.3 gigawatts that will run only in the evenings, Central Electricity Authority Chairman Pankaj Batra said in New Delhi. The agency envisions 20 gigawatts of gas-fired capacity being used as peaking stations to even out supply fluctuations from a large amount of renewable energy that’s set be built by 2022, he said.

“The government