Bengaluru’s water utility is quietly reshaping how one of India’s fastest-growing cities powers its most essential service. Faced with soaring electricity bills and rising pressure on urban finances, the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) has begun expanding its in-house renewable energy generation, primarily solar marking a structural shift in how the city plans to manage water, energy, and long-term sustainability.The transition is being anchored in the Cauvery Stage VI drinking water project, a large-scale infrastructure programme designed to supply an additional 500 million litres of water per day to the metropolitan region. Beyond its water delivery mandate, the project integrates decentralised solar power generation to reduce dependence on grid electricity, which currently represents one of BWSSB’s largest operating expenses.
According to officials familiar with the planning, electricity costs for the new Cauvery phase were projected at over ₹19 crore per month. By generating a portion of that power internally through solar installations, the utility expects to offset nearly a third of those costs. The savings are expected to strengthen BWSSB’s financial resilience at a time when urban utilities across India are struggling with volatile energy prices and constrained municipal budgets. Energy consumption is a critical challenge for water utilities. Pumping raw water across long distances, treating it to potable standards, and distributing it across dense urban areas requires continuous power. Bengaluru’s water system is no exception, with monthly electricity expenditure estimated at around ₹86 crore. Reducing that burden, urban planners argue, is as much about fiscal discipline as it is about climate responsibility.
BWSSB’s sewage treatment plants are emerging as another pillar of the renewable strategy. Several facilities already generate power through biogas recovery, producing over 1,000 megawatt-hours each month. Officials say upcoming treatment plants are being designed with phased energy recovery systems, allowing them to meet a portion of their own electricity demand while stabilising long-term operating costs. There is also an economic dimension to this transition. By reducing reliance on high-tariff grid electricity currently purchased at around ₹6.50 per unit—the utility can insulate itself from tariff shocks. Any sustained reduction in operational expenditure could ease pressure on water tariffs for residents, an issue of growing concern as household utility costs rise alongside housing and transport expenses.
Urban infrastructure analysts note that such integrated planning reflects a broader shift underway in Indian cities, where water, energy, and climate resilience are increasingly treated as interconnected systems rather than isolated services. The surplus power exported from certain treatment plants into the city’s electricity grid further strengthens this ecosystem approach. While the immediate gains are financial, the longer-term impact lies in building urban utilities that are cleaner, more predictable in cost, and better aligned with the realities of climate stress. As Bengaluru continues to expand, how effectively these systems scale will shape not just service delivery, but the city’s ability to grow sustainably without passing unchecked costs onto its residents.
