India is strengthening its energy storage ecosystem through a coordinated set of policy, regulatory, market and manufacturing measures aimed at addressing renewable energy intermittency and maintaining grid stability, the Ministry of Power said.
Energy storage technologies, including Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) and Pumped Storage Projects (PSP), are being positioned as key enablers of India’s renewable energy transition. Drawing on global best practices from countries with high renewable penetration, the government has identified storage systems as critical for providing ancillary grid services such as frequency control, voltage regulation, peak shifting, congestion management and black-start support.
Under the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Ancillary Services) Regulations, 2022, energy storage systems have been made eligible to provide secondary and tertiary reserve ancillary services, subject to specified conditions. Renewable Energy Management Centres have been established for monitoring, forecasting and scheduling renewable generation, while Automatic Generation Control is being deployed to balance supply and demand in real time.
A planning framework has also been put in place to guide large-scale storage deployment. The Central Electricity Authority has estimated a requirement of around 336 GWh of energy storage capacity by 2029–30 and about 411 GWh by 2031–32 to enable reliable renewable integration. Guidelines for preparation of Resource Adequacy Plans, issued in June 2023, incorporate energy storage as a core planning resource alongside generation and demand-side measures.
Policy and regulatory changes have followed. The Electricity Rules were amended in December 2022 to recognise energy storage systems as an integral part of the power system. Storage has also been included in the Harmonised Master List of Infrastructure, enabling access to long-tenure and lower-cost financing. A National Framework for Promotion of Energy Storage Systems was issued in September 2023, outlining pathways for deployment, market integration and regulatory facilitation.
On the demand and market side, waiver of inter-State transmission system charges has been extended for co-located BESS projects and pumped storage projects awarded up to June 2028. Storage-based resources have been allowed to participate in ancillary services markets and the high-price day-ahead market, enabling them to respond to peak price signals. Two viability gap funding schemes have been launched to support the development of about 43 GWh of battery storage capacity.
Supply-side measures include a Production-Linked Incentive scheme with an outlay of ₹18,100 crore to establish 50 GWh of advanced chemistry cell manufacturing capacity, including grid-scale storage. Additional measures have been introduced to expedite pumped storage projects, expand ownership models for storage assets and promote co-location of storage with solar power projects to improve dispatchability.
