For years, India told its clean energy story as a story about panels. More parks. More gigawatts.
The part nobody photographs is the wire.
A solar park takes about two years to build. The line that carries its power out takes about four. The government's own presentation on the scheme states the rule plainly: 'transmission must precede renewable energy generation'.
When the wire comes late, grid operators switch off power that someone has already paid for. The panels work. The grid can't take it.
On Wednesday, 30 September 2026, the Union Cabinet cleared Phase III of the Green Energy Corridor (GEC-III). The scheme goes by PM-DHARA. In Hindi, dhara means a stream or a current. That is the whole idea. Give green power a place to flow.
The money splits two ways.
The center will fund Rs 540.8 bn of the total. Most of it, Rs 450 bn, backs the state networks. Another Rs 60 bn helps cover the cost of the batteries. Most of the rest clears dues from earlier phases.
The physical targets matter more than the rupees. By the year ending March 2033, the scheme aims to add 51,126 circuit kilometres of lines and 228,903 megavolt-amperes (MVA) of transformer capacity.
That should let states move up to 135 gigawatts (GW) of renewable power. The renewable energy ministry expects it to unlock Rs 4.6 tn of new plant investment.
This is the part investors should read twice. The center builds nothing. It pays about a third and sets the rules. The states run the show.
Now the winners sort themselves. Whoever wins the auctions owns the assets. Whoever builds substations gets contracts.
Whoever makes transformers and wire gets orders, no matter who wins.
One date explains the timing. The waiver on inter-state transmission charges ends in June 2028. Once it goes, states have every reason to make and use more clean power at home.
That takes local wires. Lots of them.
Phase II covered seven states and about 20 GW. Phase III covers up to 135 GW and reaches new regions, including the North-East and the Himalayan states.
Lines grow nearly five times. Transformer capacity grows more than eight.
The battery half
The batteries cost about Rs 10 million (m) per megawatt-hour of storage. The center's Rs 60 bn covers roughly 12% of that bill.
This half is harder to follow. Grid-scale storage in India is young, and the bidding details are yet to come. So, all five stocks below sit on the transmission side, where the link is direct.
5 stocks to watch
Think of them as five points on one line: the owner, the builder, the equipment maker, the wire maker, and the transformer supplier to states.
#1 Power Grid Corporation of India
Power Grid wins more transmission auctions than anyone else. It holds about 44% of the tariff value of all bid projects since bidding began.
It took nine of the 28 projects bid out in the year ended March 2026. This year, it reported six more wins up to July 2026, across both inter-state and intra-state lines. Intra-state lines are exactly what GEC-III will offer.
Work in hand stood near Rs 1.75 tn at the end of June 2026, and 83% of it came from bid projects. Management has guided for Rs 370 bn of capital spending this year.
What needs attention is growth. Profit for the June quarter was flat at Rs 36 bn. Return on equity has slipped from 23% in the year ended March 2022 to about 16.5% in the year ended March 2026. The stock trades at about 15 times earnings, close to its 52-week low.
#2 Techno Electric & Engineering
Techno builds high-voltage substations, the points where voltage goes up or down. That is the 228,903 MVA part of this scheme. Its clients include Power Grid, private line owners, and state utilities. It also bids for lines itself. It has won four and sold three.
The order book stood at Rs 110 bn in August 2026, up from Rs 96 bn at the end of June. Standalone revenue rose 25% to Rs 6.4 bn in the June quarter. The company carries no debt and holds about Rs 12.5 bn in cash and investments.
What needs attention is margin. Operating profit rose just 13%, half the pace of revenue. The stock fell 7% after the results. Part of its cash also goes into a data centre business. Return on equity is near 11%, and the stock trades at about 25 times earnings.
#3 GE Vernova T&D India
GE Vernova T&D makes the hardware inside a substation: transformers, switchgear, and grid control systems.
June quarter revenue rose 38% to Rs 18.4 bn, and profit rose 25% to Rs 3.6 bn. The order backlog stood at Rs 209.3 bn, more than three years of sales.
Two things need attention. First, the company has deliberately cut its exposure to state utilities. They now make up under 2% of its backlog.
So its share of GEC-III will come mainly through the private and central players that win the auctions. Second, order intake fell 30% in the quarter, and gross margin slipped to 41.3%. The stock trades at about 82 times earnings.
#4 APAR Industries
APAR makes conductors, the aluminium wire strung between towers. Some 51,126 circuit kilometres of new lines will need a lot of it. Its premium conductors also push more power down existing routes, which suits the cost-plus upgrades.
Conductors are APAR's biggest business, with Rs 127 bn of revenue in the year ended March 2026. In the June quarter, group revenue rose 29.1% to Rs 65.9 bn and profit jumped 78% to Rs 4.7 bn. Premium products made up 50.3% of conductor sales.
What needs attention is the run-up. The APAR share price has climbed from a 52-week low of Rs 6,800 to about Rs 17,400 and trades at about 60 times earnings. Promoter holding fell 2.35 percentage points in the latest quarter.
Margins have also swung sharply. Net margin was 3.8% in the March quarter and 7.1% in the June quarter.
#5 Transformers & Rectifiers (India)
Of the five, this one has the most direct line to the states. Its recent orders came straight from state transmission utilities in Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Andhra Pradesh. These are the same utilities that will run GEC-III projects in their states.
Orders poured in. June quarter inflows rose 218% to Rs 21.1 bn and took the order book to a record Rs 66.3 bn, up 26%.
What needs attention is delivery. Revenue grew only 8% to Rs 5.7 bn, and profit dipped to Rs 643 m. Expansion work at its Changodar plant cut output. Management lowered its growth guidance for the year to 25% from 30-35%.
The stock is down about 45% over the past year and trades at about 31 times earnings. Promoter holding is down 10.6 percentage points over three years.
What to watch from here
- The first state tenders. Challenge mode means the order in which states qualify will decide where the early money goes.
- Land. Right-of-way problems have already slowed line work in Rajasthan and Gujarat.
- Battery bid rules. The design will decide who can win the Rs 500 bn.
- Price. The market already pays up for some of these names and not for others. Real orders will test that gap.
The bottom line
The scheme hands no company a contract. It builds a pipeline. Companies still have to win bids, deliver on time, and collect from state utilities.
But the logic is hard to argue with. Power that can't travel is worth nothing. For the next six and a half years, India is paying to make sure it can.
--- Advertisement ---
Investment in securities market are subject to market risks. Read all the related documents carefully before investing
Which businesses are most likely to emerge stronger over the next 3 to 5 years?
After screening thousands of listed companies, comparing industries, and examining balance sheets...
Our research team discovered some of the strongest opportunities in what we call... Essential Stocks.
Opportunities like this do not remain hidden forever.
Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only. It is not a stock recommendation and should not be treated as such. Learn more about our recommendation services here...
Amit Gupta
Oct 6, 2026Very Informative