ANNOUNCEMENTS
This study explores the potential, challenges, and policy landscape surrounding the deployment of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) in India, with a specific focus on their role in facilitating large-scale solar PV integration and enabling a flexible, low-carbon power system. It presents a techno-economic assessment using a Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) model to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of solar PV+BESS configurations across multiple storage durations and compares them with alternative storage technologies such as pumped hydro storage (PHS) and concentrated solar power (CSP) with thermal energy storage.
The study conducts a comprehensive review of global regulatory and policy frameworks for BESS, drawing lessons from international leaders including the United States, European Union, China, and Australia. These insights are juxtaposed against India's current national and state-level policies to identify regulatory gaps, implementation challenges, and financing barriers. The findings suggest that while India has initiated several progressive steps including energy storage obligations, transmission waivers, and pilot-scale tenders key issues such as unclear market mechanisms, revenue certainty, and long-term policy signals persist.
Building on the LCOE findings and policy analysis, the thesis outlines a phased roadmap to 2050 and proposes targeted recommendations for accelerating BESS deployment in India. The study concludes that BESS is critical for achieving India’s renewable energy and net-zero goals.
