India’s total annual electricity use crossed 1,300 billion kWh in FY2022, a nearly 70% jump over FY2012. Analysis by the Pune-based non-profit Prayas, which does public interest research in the energy sector, shows why the industrial and domestic sectors are the main drivers of this growth and how households across the country switched gears on electricity use.
Maha no.1 overall, Odisha leads surge
Maharashtra occupies the top spot among Indian states on yearly power use cumulatively across the domestic, agricultural, industrial, commercial and other sectors.Gujarat is second with UP, Tamil Nadu, and Odisha making up the top 5 for total electricity consumption. India’sannual power use in 2022 was up by more than 530 billion units (BU) over 2012. The 50 BU jump in Odisha’s yearly power use, from 32 BU to 82 BU, represents the biggest chunk (9.4%) of the additional demand nationally. But in terms of consumption, it was Bihar that saw the steepest rise. Going from 6 BU to 27 BU in 2022, it clocked a 350% increase in 10 years.

A nearly 500% jump for Bihar households
An average household in Goa – the India topper – uses over five times more electricity (267.3 kWh) in a month than one in Assam (48.5 kWh) even though the NE state more than doubled its household power consumption during 2012-2022. But it is Bihar that has seen the most dramatic jump. In 2022, an average Bihar household consumed close to six times more power monthly than it did in 2012. Other states where household power use has more than doubled are Madhya Pradesh and Odisha while the UTs of J&K and Ladakh have seen a 200% jump between 2012 and 2022.

Industry fuels jump in demand
While domestic power use saw the highest rate of growth at a yearly 7.1% from 2012 to 2022, it is industry that accounts for the biggest chunk of the overall additional demand generated during 2012-22. The industrial sector had a 39% share with domestic users accounting for 32% and agricultural consumption making up 16% of the additional demand during 2012-2022. The top 5 states for industrial electricity use – Gujarat, Odisha, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Chhattisgarh, respectively – accounted for over 50% of the total power consumed by the sector in 2022. Replace Chhattisgarh with Haryana and you have the top 5 states that account for a 59% share of the increase in industrial power use during 2012-22. The energy demand for industries grew by more than 200 BU over 2012, when total sectoral consumption stood at 352 BU. India’s total domestic energy consumption went from 171 BU to 340 BU during 2012-2022. UP, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, MP and Maharashtra had a close to 50% share in the additional demand. As for agriculture, MP, Rajasthan, Telangana, Maharashtra, and UP accounted for 75% of the total growth of close to 90 BU in electricity demand during the same period.