Imperial College London and Tata Power, a major Indian integrated power company, have formalised a partnership aimed at advancing cleaner and more resilient energy systems. The collaboration follows the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on 25 September by Dr Praveer Sinha, CEO of Tata Power, and Professor Mary Ryan, Vice Provost (Research and Enterprise) at Imperial.
Building on prior research, such as a study on electricity demand management, the organisations will explore opportunities in energy storage, artificial intelligence, industrial decarbonisation, and grid modernisation. This partnership seeks to leverage Imperial’s academic insights and Tata Power’s industry expertise and investment in renewables and digital technologies.
The initiative is intended to support the rollout of new energy technologies in India and the UK, aligning with the objectives of the UK-India Net Zero Innovation Partnership. Dr Praveer Sinha highlighted the importance of scale, flexibility, and reliability in India's energy transition, stating, “Our collaboration with Imperial will help solve real-world industry challenges with deep research and new thinking and explore solutions that can be relevant not only to India’s energy journey, but also to the wider global transition.”
Professor Mary Ryan emphasised Tata Power's role as a key partner, noting their expertise and scale in delivering cleaner energy systems. She stated, “This makes the company a fantastic partner for Imperial, which brings not only world-leading frontier research capabilities in science, engineering and business, but a model of convergence science that looks beyond individual disciplines to tackle challenges too large for standard approaches to innovation.”
The partnership will also support HELIX, a programme focused on delivering equitable access to clean energy for 10 billion people by addressing systemic issues beyond isolated technologies. Harjinder Kang, His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for South Asia, and Jonathan Reynolds, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, both welcomed the collaboration as a prime example of UK-India strengths combining to drive innovation and impact, supporting economic growth and cleaner energy solutions.
