The Lure of Kutch: Ambani, Adani Pledge Billions for Clean Power in Arid Heartland

Adani Group was the first to unveil mega plans for the dry, arid expanse near the India-Pakistan border

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NEW DELHI: A vast stretch of barren land in Gujarat's Rann of Kutch, within sight of the Pakistan border, has become a centerpiece of India's clean energy ambitions, attracting multi-billion-dollar investments from tycoons Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani.

Adani Group was the first to unveil mega plans for the dry, arid expanse near the Pakistan border. Its Khavda renewable energy park—spanning 538 square kilometers, roughly five times the size of Paris—is touted as the world's largest green energy project, aiming to generate 30 GW of clean power from abundant solar and wind resources.

While the Adani Group began work at Khavda in 2022 and supplied the first electricity to the national grid by February 2024, Ambani revealed plans for a clean energy project in Kutch only in August last year during Reliance Industries's (RIL) annual shareholder meeting.

At this year's annual general meeting, his youngest son, who oversees the energy portfolio of the conglomerate, Anant, spelt out more details.