India has taken a number of initiatives with a view to promoting energy storage technologies, it was informed in the ongoing Parliament session.
In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Shri R.K Singh, Union Minister of Power and New & Renewable Energy, said that the government agrees that in the initial phase of adoption of energy storage technologies, market mechanisms and innovative economic models will be required for development and deployment of energy storage technologies which would be most beneficial to the country in the long-term.
The reply mentioned the following initiatives that have been taken to promote growth of energy storage technologies:
- Legal status for Energy Storage Systems (ESS) has been issued by the Union power ministry on January 29, 2022, wherein ESS has been designated as a Power System element which can be utilized as a generator, transmission or distribution element.
- Energy Storage Obligation trajectory till 2029-30 has been notified by Ministry of Power through its order dated July 22, 2022.
- Waiver of ISTS Charges on hydro- pumped storage projects (PSP) and battery energy storage system (BESS) projects, commissioned up to June 30, 2025. The waiver shall be applicable for a period of 25 years for hydro PSP and for a period of 12 years for BESS, or for a period subsequently notified for future projects by the Central Government from the date of commissioning of the power plant.
- Revised scheme for flexibility in generation and scheduling of thermal/ hydro power stations through bundling with Renewable Energy and Storage Power has been notified vide order dated April 12, 2022.
- Bidding Guidelines for BESS have been notified by the Union power ministry, vide resolution dated March 10, 2022.
- Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) recently concluded the bidding process for setting up of pilot projects of 500 MW/1000 MWh standalone BESS under tariff-based global competitive bidding at Fatehgarh III substation of Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (PGCIL), in Rajasthan. The bidding process is officially referred to as “ESS-I.”
Featured photograph (source: Fluence Energy) is for representation only
