India Planning Bids for 4 GWh of Grid-Scale Battery Storage System

In an attempt to make the country’s electricity green, the Indian government is planning to invite bids for setting up around 4 GWh (4000 MWh) of grid-scale battery storage system at regional load dispatch centres (RLDCs), according to an announcement made by the Minister of Power and New and Renewable Energy, Raj Kumar Singh.

The Union Minister made the announcement on Thursday at a conference organised by lobby group Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

According to him, large battery storage can strengthen India’s electricity grids through the use of green and clean energy sources like solar and wind.

One GWh (1,000-MWh) of battery capacity is sufficient to power 1 million homes for an hour and around 30,000 electric cars, according to the government. The government of India has recently approved the PLI schemes for EV batteries, where the plan is to set up 50 GWh manufacturing capacity for advanced chemistry cell batteries by attracting investments totalling Rs. 45,000 crore. The scheme entitled the National Programme on Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) Battery Storage, under the department of heavy industry (DHI), could boost EV adoption and clean energy storage in the country.

Mr. R K Singh said at the conference, “The storage will sort of act as instant intervention mechanisms wherever whenever there is any sharp fluctuation because of renewables. And part of that will be reserved as an ancillary to the grid controller, and part will be made available to the developer.”

“So, that the developer can use that part storage on a commercial basis. So, some people can park their energy there during mid-day or when the wind is heavy and then draw from it during peak hours,” Singh added.

NTPC, the country’s largest power generator, recently invited an expression of interest (EOI) for setting up 1000 MWh of grid-scale battery energy storage system (BESS) at its power plants in India. NTPC has also announced the increase of its renewable capacity target to 60 GW from the earlier 30 GW by 2032.

Along with that, energy giant Reliance Industries Ltd. has also announced a massive Rs 75,000 crore investment plan for the clean energy sector, focused mainly on the manufacturing side of things from solar equipment to battery storage and more.

Grid integration of large-scale variable renewables will be one of India’s biggest challenges as it aspires to decarbonize its power economy through the deployment of 450 GW of renewable energy by 2030. Consequently, according to the ‘International Energy Agency’s (IEA) India Energy Outlook 2021′, India could have 140 to 200 GWs of battery storage capacity by 2040 — potentially a third of total battery storage capacity in the world by then.