India became a member of the Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) Consortium by joining the initiative led by The Global Leadership Council (GLC) of the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP).
Through collaborative effort, India is among the pioneering nations committed to securing 5 GW of BESS commitments by 2024. In September, the government had endorsed viability gap funding (VGF) for BESS development. The scheme envisions establishing 4,000 MWh of BESS projects by 2030-31, with financial support of up to 40 percent of the capital cost through VGF. This is expected to resolve the issue of intermittency and lead to accelerated renewable energy (RE) integration.
Besides, it would also help expedite innovative regulations, and unlock the value streams on batteries and provide much-needed balancing support to the grid. This would positively impact the demand for RE, which is imperative for a net-zero future.
During the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28), GEAPP announced the expansion of the BESS project in India, which is pursuing a target of 1 GW for discoms under BESS by 2026. IndiGrid, a power sector infrastructure investment trust, was awarded its first BESS project to commission, operate, and maintain 40 MWh in Delhi.
As per a report, integrating increasing amounts of VRE components, mainly solar and wind, would be a major factor to drive grid storage adoption. The GEAPP, aims to provide concessional debt financing for 70 percent of the total capital investment, as well as technical assistance for the project.
