What exhibitors pay for extra power at Indian trade shows

gradeelectricalswe

10 minutes ago

7 min read

Updated 11 October 2026.

Most of the nine exhibitor manuals compared here price extra power at INR 3,500 to INR 5,500 per kW plus GST, and the unit it is billed in matters more than the rate. Some shows charge per event, some per day, one per connection, and one sells a five-day block. For the same 5 kW over a three-day show the cards work out between INR 12,500 and INR 52,500 plus GST, and INR 82,500 on Indus Food's three-phase rate. The first table sets out ten rate cards in nine rows, with the venue, the year and what each show gives free. Grade Electricals is an exhibition contractor and did not set any of these rates.

Ten rate cards, nine rows

SEMICON India's 2025 and 2026 manuals charge the same, so they share a row.

Show, venue and year	Extra power and how it is billed	Included free
SEMICON India 2025 and 2026, IICC Yashobhoomi, Delhi	INR 5,000 per kW + GST The event. Orders after 31 August 2026 carry a 30% surcharge	1 kW single phase per 9 sqm of shell stand
Strategic Electronics Summit 2026, BIEC, Bengaluru	INR 3,000 per connection up to 3 kW single phase; INR 2,500 per kW above 3 kW three phase; GST 18% extra The event period. Setup: INR 1,000 per connection up to 3 kW	See the manual
Indus Food 2026, India Expo Mart, Greater Noida	INR 3,500 per kW single phase, INR 5,500 three phase, plus GST Per kW per day. 20% surcharge after the deadline, 40% on site	See the manual
OTM 2025, Jio World Convention Centre, Mumbai	INR 3,500 per kW Period not stated. No orders accepted after the deadline	Up to 1 kW in the shell package
Bengaluru Tech Summit 2025	INR 5,000 per kW, GST 18% extra Per event. Temporary (setup) power INR 1,500 per kW per day	See the manual
Alumex India 2025, Bharat Mandapam, Delhi	INR 4,000 per kW single phase, INR 5,500 three phase, plus GST A five-day block	1 kW with a raw or fabricated booth
CMAI FAB Show 2023, Bombay Exhibition Centre	INR 4,000 per kW + 18% GST Not stated	1,000 W for a 12 sqm stall, 1,200 W for 15 to 21 sqm
Big Cine Expo 2019, Bombay Exhibition Centre	INR 3,000 per connection plus INR 4,000 per kW, GST 18% extra Two days; setup days charged the same	See the manual
ITPO circular for the new halls at Pragati Maidan, effective April 2022	INR 300 per kW per day plus INR 298 per kW one-time connection, GST extra Per day of 12 hours	Stand lighting charged separately, up to 1 kW per 12 sqm

The ITPO circular dates from December 2021 and the Big Cine card from 2019, so treat both as older than the rest. The IIJS Bharat Premiere 2026 manual lists no extra-power rate and gives a 9 sqm booth 1,000 watts. HITEX's rates are not covered here.

The same 5 kW under each card

Take 5 kW of extra load for a three-day show. Where a card sets a block, such as two days or five, the table uses the block as printed. GST is not included.

Rate card	5 kW costs
ITPO circular (INR 300 per kW per day, plus INR 298 per kW connection)	INR 5,990
Strategic Electronics Summit 2026 (three phase, above 3 kW)	INR 12,500
OTM 2025 (basis not stated)	INR 17,500
CMAI FAB Show 2023	INR 20,000
Alumex India 2025, single phase, five-day block	INR 20,000
Big Cine Expo 2019 (connection plus two days)	INR 23,000
SEMICON India 2026 and Bengaluru Tech Summit 2025	INR 25,000
Indus Food 2026, single phase, three days	INR 52,500
Indus Food 2026, three phase, three days	INR 82,500

The spread from the lowest manual card to the highest single-phase one is 4.2 times. Part of it is the rate and most of it is the unit.

Why the unit matters more than the rate

Indus Food's INR 3,500 looks cheaper than SEMICON's INR 5,000 until you notice that it is charged per day. Over three show days it comes to INR 10,500 per kW against INR 5,000, so the show with the lower headline rate costs 2.1 times as much. Strategic Electronics Summit prices the first 3 kW as one connection at INR 3,000, so a small stand pays by the connection and a larger one by the kW. Alumex sells a block: INR 4,000 buys 1 kW for five days. When two quotes disagree, they are often quoting different units.

What the free allowance covers

The allowance is small and it is the first number to check. IIJS Bharat Premiere 2026 gives a 9 sqm booth 1,000 watts and a 16 or 18 sqm booth 2,000, and tells exhibitors the booth socket is for laptops, computers and TV screens, not for equipment such as an electric kettle. SEMICON gives 1 kW per 9 sqm of shell stand, stall lighting included. CMAI's FAB Show gave 1,000 W to a 12 sqm stall. Alumex and OTM give 1 kW. A 20 sqm stand with a coffee machine, two screens and a lit fascia will go past any of these.

Where the price jumps

The jump comes from the date, not the load. SEMICON India 2026 charged standard rates for orders by 31 August, then a 30% surcharge from 1 September, and the same 30% on site. Indus Food added 20% to the whole electricity invoice after 15 December 2025 and 40% on site. OTM took no orders at all after its 15 December 2024 deadline, for a show that opened on 30 January 2025. Bengaluru Tech Summit asks for full advance payment. Order when the form arrives.

Why you cannot bring your own electrician for the mains

The organiser's contractor sells the power. The IIJS manual says electricity will be supplied only through the organiser's official contractor, and PAPEXPO's says only the organiser is authorised to do the mains installation. Wiring inside your stall is different: CMAI's FAB Show document asks exhibitors to appoint only licensed electrical contractors for their own stall work. What the contractor has to price is set out in how to choose the electrical contractor for your trade fair in India.

If you are the organiser setting a rate card

Print the unit and the period on the card, since that is where exhibitors lose track, and print the surcharge dates. Decide whether on-site orders exist at all: OTM refuses them, while SEMICON and Indus Food take them at 30% and 40% more. One more correction: you may see INR 25 per kWh quoted for Pragati Maidan. In the ITPO circular that is the rate for permanent metered allottees, and the exhibition rate is the INR 300 per kW per day above. What your contractor charges you is a separate number that no manual prints. Best electrical contractors for exhibitions in India lists whom to ask for it. The utility's side of the bill, including the 1.5 and 1.25 multipliers for a temporary supply, is in temporary electricity connection for an exhibition in Mumbai.

A four-step budget

Suppose, as a made-up example, that you need 6 kW and the stand includes 1 kW. First, subtract the allowance: you buy 5 kW. Second, find out whether the rate is per event, per day or per connection, and which phase. Third, multiply. At SEMICON's rate that is INR 25,000, and at Indus Food's single-phase rate over three days it is INR 52,500. Fourth, add 18% GST, and add the surcharge if you might order late: INR 25,000 becomes INR 32,500 at SEMICON's 30%, and INR 52,500 becomes INR 73,500 at Indus Food's 40% on site.

Short answers

How much does extra power cost at an Indian exhibition?

On most cards, INR 3,500 to INR 5,500 per kW plus GST. Strategic Electronics Summit charges per connection up to 3 kW and INR 2,500 per kW above that, and the ITPO circular charges INR 300 per kW per day. The unit varies from show to show, so compare totals, not rates.

Is exhibition power charged per day or per event?

Both. SEMICON and Bengaluru Tech Summit charge for the event, Indus Food and the ITPO circular charge per day, Alumex sells a five-day block, and OTM and CMAI do not say.

Does GST apply?

Every card that mentions tax adds it on top: 18% at Bengaluru Tech Summit, CMAI, Strategic Electronics Summit and Big Cine, and GST at SEMICON, Alumex, Indus Food and in the ITPO circular.

What do exhibitors get free?

At IIJS, 1,000 W for a 9 sqm booth and 2,000 W for 16 or 18 sqm. At CMAI, 1,000 to 1,200 W. At SEMICON, 1 kW per 9 sqm of shell stand, and at Alumex and OTM, 1 kW.

Organisers: call us before you print the card

If you are an organiser and want to set a rate card against what your contractor can deliver, call Grade on +91 22 28366241 or 42, write to enquiry@gradeelectricals.com or use the contact page with the venue and the dates. Grade's exhibition and event power page lists the equipment and venues. These figures come from the editions named, and the older ones are flagged, so check them against the current manual.

About Grade Electricals

Grade Electricals has delivered electrical projects, maintenance, exhibition power and liaisoning from Mumbai since 2004, with branches in Delhi and Hyderabad. It is empanelled at Nesco's Bombay Exhibition Centre, Yashobhoomi and HITEX, holds ISO 9001:2015, 45001:2018 and 14001:2015, and won the Exhibition Excellence Award for Excellence in Essential Services in 2023 and 2024. For a show, see the exhibition and event power and electrical liaisoning services, read the about page, or write to enquiry@gradeelectricals.com. Rates and venue rules on this page are reviewed monthly through the September to March show season. Next review: 11 November 2026.