India’s Stored Potential – pv magazine International

India has made great strides in building a domestic PV supply chain. Do you see this happening in the energy storage sector as well?

JT: India’s domestic industry has made very impressive investments in manufacturing facilities, technology transfer and business partnerships. The government has encouraged investment in solar energy through production-linked incentives and basic customs duties, and many financial incentives have been extended by banks and private capital to increase the number of manufacturing facilities in India.

Based on the approved list of models and manufacturers that companies must have to be eligible for government tenders, there are currently over 90 companies manufacturing solar modules in India.

Similar moves are taking shape in the battery space. The same PLI has been activated in the battery storage segment, also with a focus on creating opportunities to build local projects. India is moving towards the same strategy that is being followed in the solar sector to create a domestic ecosystem for battery systems.

Do battery production plans cover the entire supply chain, down to cells and even raw materials?

EV battery itself is a very new segment for India. The aim is to create a robust domestic supply chain for mobility and energy storage solutions to reduce dependence on imports.

Currently, India imports large quantities from South Korea, China, Japan and Taiwan, but if you look at the latest budget, the Indian government has proposed a mission on essential minerals. This is an initiative to secure supplies of essential minerals that are essential for technological advancement and the transition to a green economy.

This mission includes identifying materials related to renewable energy, electric mobility and other high-tech industries. India has already activated this critical minerals mission and is looking for partnerships in India and abroad. Efforts are being made to increase domestic production of minerals such as lithium, cobalt and rare earth elements. TThe Ministry of Mines and the Geological Survey of India are working on several lithium-related initiatives to check the availability of the commodity in India and nearby countries. They are also considering tie-ups with Australia, Chile and other mineral-rich countries to secure supplies.

It will take some time, but there is also a chance to create domestic availability of some of these chemicals. In Jammu and Kashmir, about 5.9 million tons of lithium have been identified by the Geological Survey of India.

How do you think the demand for batteries will develop in India?

The adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) is the next key step in India’s energy transformation. This change is imperative as air pollution has become a major health hazard in some cities and people are suffering.

India also remains one of the world’s largest importers of oil, and we need to reduce this dependence and the associated strain on national finances. We have enough sun and wind, and we need to make the most of it.

Fortunately, we see the transition to electric vehicles happening very quickly. Some states and cities are moving to convert entire public transport systems to electric vehicles. India has over 2.8 million electric vehicles on its roads and the number is expected to grow by a large margin.

Demand for batteries, especially advanced battery technologies, is expected to grow significantly. For electric vehicles, battery weight and cost are still a limiting factor, but we see researchers and industry quickly addressing this.

Stationary storage also plays an important role as India seeks to integrate more renewable energy sources. How do you see this market developing?

India’s commitment to increasing its share of renewable energy requires the adoption of energy storage to cope with generation variability. Recently, India has turned heavily towards distributed solar power on rooftops. And in commercial projects, energy storage is increasingly being delivered with it to create a complete energy solution. This demand is coming from a range of industries, many of which are growing rapidly. Whether it is consumer electronics, pharmaceuticals, cold storage, construction, mining and other heavy industries, all of them are turning to distributed solar power and energy storage to power their operations.

There are also a lot of large solar and wind installations in India. Do you see the potential for energy storage and distributed photovoltaic installations in this area?

That’s certainly part of India’s plans. At utility scale, about 160 GW of energy storage is in various stages of planning, and that will be crucial to maintaining grid stability across the country.

Batteries are increasingly being used to stabilize the grid and manage peak demand. The government has understood the need for battery technology and is looking to incorporate storage along with renewable energy into many new projects. Energy storage brings huge benefits to the grid and is well on its way to becoming a mainstream technology.

Is that why you decided to put the battery expo next to REI again? How big do you expect this year’s event to be?

We are organizing one event dedicated to renewable energy (Renewable Energy India Expo) and another dedicated to e-mobility (The Battery Show India), with storage in both. It is two birds with one stone and visitors will see how each sector complements the other.

For example, the Prime Minister of India recently announced a plan (PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana) for rooftop solar installations to be delivered to 10 million consumers and now the industry is not just focused on power generation. Energy storage is part of the power generation package delivered to the customer. There are so many small towns, villages and rural areas in India which were struggling with reliable electricity supply. Home solar plus energy storage can play a major role in the solution for these regions and it is a huge opportunity for the battery industry to grow in India.

India has also announced ambitious plans to produce green hydrogen. How does this fit into the renewables and energy storage space?

India’s green hydrogen ambitions are really picking up steam, with all the major corporations in the country getting involved. Hydrogen storage is a key part of this and I hope some of our exhibitors will have solutions for this at the show. Along with energy storage, this is a key part of India’s energy transformation and I hope to see these two industries come together even more at The Battery Show India.