Lucknow, Aug. 21 -- State's peak demand could cross 40,000 MW by 2030 and 50,000 MW by 2034, making reliable and affordable power a key priority, said Ashish Goel, IAS, additional chief secretary, Additional Sources of Energy, and chairman, UPNEDA, state government. Addressing the gathering at the 6th Edition of the CII Uttar Pradesh Clean Energy Summit 2026 in Lucknow, on Thursday, Goel highlighted the rapidly growing energy demand in Uttar Pradesh, driven by AI and data centres, electric mobility, rising air-conditioning demand and economic growth. He noted that the state's peak demand could cross 40,000 MW by 2030 and 50,000 MW by 2034, making reliable and affordable power a key priority. He emphasised that renewable energy must be supported by storage, grid management and balancing solutions to ensure round-the-clock power. Calling for greater industry participation, Goel encouraged investments in R&D and innovation in energy storage, rooftop solar, distributed renewables, compressed biogas and agrisolar. Vinamra Agarwal, chairman, CII Clean Energy Summit & joint MD & CEO, Technical Associates Industries LLP emphasised that the clean energy transition is a shared responsibility and will require close coordination across generation, transmission, distribution and end-use....