Kerala power board plans battery storage project in Thiruvananthapuram

According to recent media reports, the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) is keenly looking at grid-scale battery energy storage systems (BESS), given the growing emphasis on renewable energy and the rising peak-time power demand in the state.

The state power utility proposes to pilot a BESS project in Thiruvananthapuram city, B. Ashok, chairman and managing director, KSEB, told a national daily. “It is a container-sized system and we hope to attach it to either the Technopark substation or the Medical College substation. The system is ideal for vital installations which need highly reliable power supply like airports, techno parks and medical facilities,’‘ Mr. Ashok said.

During peak demand

Grid-scale storage systems are technology options which allow utilities to store generated power for later use. For instance, cheaper solar or hydro power harnessed during day-time, off-peak hours can be stored and used later to meet the evening peak demand when electricity prices are also high. The Union Power Ministry has noted that BESS ‘are poised to become critical’ for integrating renewable energy capabilities in the country.

The system can be packed into a substation like a transformer and the grid will keep charging it, Mr. Ashok said. In November 2021, the KSEB had invited EoI for establishing storage facilities with a total capacity of 10 MW. The pilot project will also test the KSEB’s ability to integrate BESS into its future operational regime and improve the reliability of the grid.

Battery cost falls

“When you have cheaper, surplus solar or hydro power to charge it, battery storage can support the peak period or a power deficit phase. BESS has potential now as battery costs have fallen,’‘ Mr. Ashok said.

Kerala has a bevy of roof-top, ground and reservoir-based solar power projects in the works. By 2025, the State aims to generate 1,000 MW from renewable energy sources like small hydro, wind and solar.

The Report on Optimal Generation Capacity Mix for 2029-30 by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) expected battery energy storage technologies to become financially viable and ‘complement renewable energy as prominent generation sources in the coming years.’

The KSEB, in its Capital Investment Plan for 2022-27, noted that the Power Ministry has announced a waiver of inter-state transmission charges on energy supplied to/from BESS projects commissioned before June 2025, if at least 70% of the charging requirement is met through renewable sources.