The grid linkages, which an industry official said could take at least four years to complete, follow India's effort to begin trading power with Middle Eastern countries such as the United Arab Emirates.
Indian energy officials are holding separate and group discussions with some countries on advancing regional power grid interconnections at ongoing Group of 20 ministerial meetings in the Indian state of Goa, the power ministry officials said. While cross-border grid linkages have drawn investment and government interest in regions from Europe to Southeast Asia, the rising cost of building subsea cables, surging prices of raw materials needed to upgrade grids and geopolitical tensions have raised questions about the viability of such projects.
The effort could help ease fossil fuel dependence by making solar power available for more hours of the day, the ministry officials said.