IIT Delhi, CERC To Establish Centre Of Excellence In Area Of Power Sector Regulation

Last Updated:May 29, 2025, 18:40 IST

The CoE will carry out academic, technical, and policy research by identifying gaps and challenges in the current energy transition period in India, IIT Delhi said.

The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC), IIT Delhi, and Grid Controller of India (Grid-India) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a Centre of Excellence (CoE) at IIT Delhi. This CoE will focus on power sector regulation, policies, power markets, and grid operations. It will serve as a knowledge hub, providing regulatory commissions, power system operators, utilities, and other organisations with the expertise needed to meet their specific job requirements.

The MoU was signed by Prof. Rangan Banerjee, Director, IIT Delhi; Sh. Harpreet Singh Pruthi, Secretary, CERC; and Sh. Paresh R. Ranpara, Director (Human Resources), Grid-India.

The CoE aims to generate knowledge and support informed decision-making in the creation of effective regulations through collaborative research and analysis. The CoE seeks to bridge the gap between industry and academia, finding local solutions to address current and emerging challenges in power system operations. Additionally, the CoE will serve as a platform for developing academic programs, leading to improved lawmaking and better regulatory techniques.

Speaking about the MoU, Prof. Rangan Banerjee, Director, IIT Delhi, said, “We are excited about the new Centre of Excellence in Power Sector Regulation. We look forward to working together with Grid-India and CERC to provide research and policy inputs to transform our power sector.”

Jishnu Barua, Chairman, CERC, said, “The Centre is expected to play a pivotal role in enhancing expertise of human resources for the sector and is likely to serve as a bridge between academia and the practitioners.”

Samir Chandra Saxena, Chairman and Managing Director, Grid-India, said, “Grid-India looks forward to this collaboration. This initiative marks a significant step towards advancing regulatory capacity in the power sector, fostering research, innovation, and informed policymaking and regulatory research for a more resilient and future-ready power sector ecosystem.”

The Center of Excellence (CoE) has five main areas of functionality:

1. Conduct academic, technical, and policy research to identify gaps and challenges in India’s current energy transition, including regulations, markets, and grid operations.

2. Perform system studies to inform decisions about grid practices and related regulations.

3. Provide training, skill development, and capacity-building activities to create a specialized workforce and enhance the skills of existing regulators, system operators, and other stakeholders. This includes short-term training in quantitative techniques, tariff models, modeling and forecasting techniques, electricity markets, etc.

4. Develop a knowledge hub and information base to address current needs and future regulatory, operational, and strategic challenges.

5. Serve as a conduit for offering academic programs at IIT Delhi.

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