Current market analyses (Mordor Intelligence, January 2026) put the Indian wire and cable market for 2025 at around 21.2 billion US dollars. By 2031, it is expected to grow to 35.6 billion US dollars — at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9%. Infomerics Ratings forecasts in parallel that the specific cable segment market (energy cables, industrial cables) will rise from 6.6 billion US dollars (2024) to over 10.9 billion US dollars by 2033.
The global context underscores India's special position: the worldwide wire and cable market is estimated at around 245 to 255 billion US dollars in 2026, with a global CAGR of approximately 6%. India ranks — alongside Southeast Asia — among the regions with the highest growth momentum. While western markets are focused on network replacement and modernisation, the subcontinent is experiencing genuine new-build growth in a still largely untapped market.
The key growth drivers at a glance:
- Rural electrification and distribution network expansion: India's Saubhagya programme has secured basic supply for 99% of households — but grid quality, capacity and redundancy now need to be massively expanded.
- Urbanisation: Millions of people move to Indian cities every year, generating sustained high demand for building installation cables, low-voltage distributors and communication cables.
- Electric mobility: India's rapidly growing EV segment requires not only charging cables, but also a new generation of vehicle wiring harnesses.
- Digitalisation: The expansion of fibre-optic and 5G networks is creating additional demand for telecommunications cables.
The most important Indian manufacturers include Polycab India, KEI Industries, Finolex Cables and Havells — all companies that have invested heavily in capacity expansion and international certifications in recent years.
500 Gigawatts by 2030: India and the World's Largest Energy Transition
At the heart of India's infrastructure boom is also an energy policy ambition without equal: by 2030, installed capacity from non-fossil sources is to rise to 500 gigawatts — meaning renewable energy should account for at least 50% of total electricity generation capacity. In fact, India's installed non-fossil capacity has already tripled from 81 GW (before 2014) to 250 GW in September 2025 — a pace that has made India the third-largest country worldwide by installed renewable energy capacity.
The Indian Ministry of Power has developed a comprehensive transmission plan to achieve this target, which translates directly into order and growth potential for wire and cable manufacturers:
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Infrastructure Component
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Planned Capacity
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HVDC transmission corridors (+800 kV)
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8,120 circuit kilometres (ckm)
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|
765 kV AC lines
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25,960 ckm
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400 kV lines
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15,758 ckm
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220 kV cables
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1,052 ckm
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Battery storage
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51.5 GW
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Total investment
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approx. 2.44 Lakh Crore INR (~EUR 27 bn)
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Source: Ministry of Power, Government of India / PIB, December 2022
These figures make clear: the build-out of India's energy transmission network for the 500 GW target represents, in terms of high-voltage cable requirements alone, one of the largest individual projects in global cable demand this decade. In particular, the HVDC corridor expansion — with projects such as the Ladakh Renewables Corridor or the coastal wind connection in Tamil Nadu and Gujarat — sets benchmarks for cables that must withstand extreme mechanical, thermal and electrical loads.
For international specialised suppliers, this creates a direct market opportunity: HVDC cables in this voltage class are to this day manufactured predominantly by European producers such as Prysmian, Nexans or NKT. India's grid will depend on this technology.
The Tube Industry: Lifelines for Water, Gas and Energy
What applies to cables applies with equal intensity to the tube industry. India's pipes and tubes market has been growing dynamically for years, driven by three parallel megatrends:
Gas infrastructure: The City Gas Distribution (CGD) network, which brings natural gas to households and commercial enterprises, is currently being expanded across 295 geographic zones. Major pipeline projects such as the Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga or the Jagdishpur-Haldia Pipeline are creating thousands of kilometres of new gas infrastructure and generating sustained demand for high-quality steel pipes for high-pressure applications.
Water supply: The Jal Jeevan Mission, a programme to provide drinking water to 192 million rural households by 2024, is one of the largest pipeline construction projects in world history. Even though the original deadline has been delayed, the investment horizon remains intact. Tens of billions of dollars will still be invested in distribution lines, pumping stations and storage facilities.
