India’s Battery Storage Rollout Struggles To Gain Momentum

According to central government data, the country currently has just 204.5 MW of installed BESS capacity up and running, with a total energy storage of 505.6 MWh. It is a start, but still a long way from where things need to be if renewables are to truly power the grid round the clock.

Union MoS for Power, Shripad Naik, recently informed the Rajya Sabha that nine BESS projects are currently operational in the country. These include sites like Tata Power–Delhi, Doligunj-Attam Pahad in the Andamans, Modhera Sun Temple in Gujarat, Kavaratti in Lakshadweep, Rajnandgaon in Chhattisgarh, KLTPS in Kutch, SECI in Karnataka, and a tariff-based BESS installation in Delhi.

The core components of BESS — battery cells and battery management systems — are still largely dependent on foreign technology. Efforts are underway to develop indigenous technologies, but clear breakthroughs are yet to materialise.

Missing Guidelines Or Policy Measures

So far, the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) has not issued any official guidelines or policies for BESS tariffs, technical parameters, or performance standards. However, in 2025, the CEA released a draft regulation on safety, which includes specific recommendations for BESS systems.

India’s BESS Progress Slow But Steady

According to a senior official in the Gujarat Energy Department, BESS is still in the development phase in India. However, recently discovered tariffs are showing promising signs. The government is now moving forward to strengthen local manufacturing, technology transfer, and regulatory frameworks to meet daily energy demands and solve grid stability and renewable integration challenges.

Local Tech Vital For Energy Shift 

A top official in the state Energy Department emphasised the importance of technological self-reliance for the future of renewable energy. As the global energy revolution accelerates, developing indigenous technology is crucial for India — not just for economic growth, but also for employment generation and environmental sustainability.

This challenge can be transformed into an opportunity only through collaborative efforts by the government, research institutions, industries, and local communities.

Hurdles To BESS Success In India

• Weak cooperation between universities and industries is delaying technology transfer
• Insufficient budget allocation for R&D in renewable energy
• Inadequate training for local technicians and engineers in the latest technologies
• Dependence on imports for solar panels, batteries, inverters, and wind turbines
• Lack of special grants or policy frameworks from the government to boost technology development
• Though PLI schemes exist for solar manufacturing, their results have yet to scale up significantly.

Enabling BESS: Govt's Role Ahead

• Allocate special grants to IITs, NITs, and private institutions for research in renewable energy technologies
• Set up innovation hubs and energy technology coordination centres
• Support local startups through venture capital funding, subsidies, and pilot project assistance
• Introduce renewable energy courses in ITIs and polytechnic institutes
• Provide training for MSMEs to manufacture energy equipment
• Sign MoUs with foreign firms for technology sharing, or introduce similar models
• Revise the customs duty framework to promote domestic manufacturing over imports
• Develop affordable and locally suitable energy storage technologies
• Implement practical solutions with the help of NGOs, panchayats, and startups

Tariffs discovered for BESS in recent bids concluded in FY26, for a contract period of 12 years, with Viability Gap Funding support of Rs 27 lakh/MWh, are: