Govt & Firms Join Hands For 50 GWh Capacity Battery Storage Under PLI Scheme

Reliance New Energy Limited, Ola Electric Mobility Private Limited and Rajesh Exports Limited have signed the Programme Agreement under the PLI scheme  (Production Linked Incentive) for Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) battery storage, the Ministry of Heavy Industries has announced. Earlier in the year, Reliance New Energy Solar, Hyundai Global Motors, Ola Electric Mobility, Rajesh Exports had been given a go-ahead to receive incentives as under the PLI Scheme for ACC battery storage. As per several reports, the status of Hyundai Global Motors with respect to approval is under consideration.

The government has announced setting up a total capacity of 50GWh ACC under the PLI scheme. Of this, Ola and Hyundai were awarded incentives for establishing capacities worth 20 GWh each. Reliance New Energy Solar and Rajesh Exports were to receive incentives for setting up capacities of 5 GWh each.

The said companies will be eligible for incentives under India’s Rs 18,100 crore programme. Along with the capacities deputed by the Ministry of Heavy Industries under the scheme, private players will have to set up battery manufacturing capacity of 95 GWh, the ministry further added.

There were ten bidders with a manufacturing capacity of 128 GWh as per the PLI Scheme of ACC Battery Storage. Under this scheme, the manufacturing facility is to be established within two years’ time.

The Union Minister for Heavy Industries Mahendra Nath Pandey shared that “this embarks a new chapter in India’s manufacturing industry as we set the vision for battery manufacturing and compete globally with other nations in this sunrise sector.”

The PLI Scheme

The (PLI) Scheme ‘National Programme on Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) Battery Storage’ has been introduced to accomplish the manufacturing capacity 50 Gwh of ACC. The motive behind this is to give an impetus to India’s manufacturing capabilities with a budgetary disbursement of Rs 18,100 crore while also ensuring greater domestic value addition. The scheme also is a step towards making sure that the levelised cost of battery manufacturing in India is competitive at a global level.

At the same time, the scheme looks at opening doors to investment that will eventually catalyse domestic manufacturing. Additionally, it aims to create demand for battery storage (both EVs as well as stationary storage) while also attracting  FDI. The ACC PLI scheme is believed to make India less dependent on other countries by leading to a substantial reduction in the import of crude oil. It is touted to greatly increase the proportion of renewable energy.