High-Level Roundtable on Unlocking Battery Storage for India’s Renewable Energy Integration

Like most countries, India’s low cost energy transition trajectory hinges on successfully integrating large-scale renewable energy, particularly solar. As projections from the Central Electricity Authority indicate, solar could account for as much as 60% of the installed capacity mix by 2047. With this dramatic shift comes an equally significant challenge: integrating variable generation in a way that ensures reliability, affordability, and efficiency.

BESS, alongside pumped hydro and other flexible resources, is fast emerging as a vital enabler of this transition. With falling capital costs, improved technical performance, and exceptional versatility in supporting grid services, BESS is essential for managing ramping, reserves, and peak shifting—especially as solar penetration accelerates. Yet, despite growing policy momentum and tender activity, large-scale deployment in India remains limited by planning, regulatory, and procurement constraints.

To examine how these barriers can be addressed, TLG convened a high-level roundtable on 24 April 2025 at the India International Centre, New Delhi. Bringing together senior stakeholders from across the power sector, the roundtable provided a platform for structured dialogue on unlocking BESS deployment at scale. The discussion focused on aligning planning and procurement frameworks with system needs, enabling regulatory mechanisms for multi-service storage assets, and drawing insights from international experience to inform India’s next steps.

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To view the Roundtable Presentations, please click the following links:  

Designing for Value Stacking: Experience from the Philippines presented by Mike Thomas

Policy Risk and Market Design: Lessons from Australia presented by Rajat Sarawat 

Optimising Storage at System Level: Madhya Pradesh Case Study presented by Dr Puneet Chitkara

Global Cost Trajectories and Firm Green Power Pathways presented by Dr Amol Phadke, University of California, Berkeley

Bridging the Last Mile: Developer Execution Realities presented by Sivaprasad Manikkapurath, ReNew Power

Please click here to view photographs of our event.

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