India Accelerates Energy Storage Deployment to Support Renewable Integration and Grid Stability

To tackle the intermittency of renewable energy and ensure grid stability, the Government of India has rolled out a series of policy, regulatory, demand-side, and supply-side measures to expand energy-storage capacity, including Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) and Pumped Storage Projects (PSPs).

Drawing from global best practices in countries with high renewable penetration, India is positioning energy-storage systems to deliver essential ancillary services such as frequency control, voltage regulation, peak shifting, congestion management, and black-start support. These systems play a critical role in managing the variability of wind and solar power and ensuring real-time grid reliability.

Under the CERC Ancillary Services Regulations, 2022, energy-storage systems are now eligible to provide Secondary and Tertiary Reserve Ancillary Services. Renewable Energy Management Centres (REMCs) support forecasting, monitoring, and scheduling of renewable output, while Automatic Generation Control (AGC) helps balance supply and demand in real time.

The Government has also established a comprehensive planning framework for large-scale deployment of storage. The Central Electricity Authority (CEA) estimates that India will require around 336 GWh of energy-storage capacity by 2029–30, rising to 411 GWh by 2031–32, to support reliable renewable-energy integration.

Further, the Guidelines for Resource Adequacy Plans (RAP) issued on 28 June 2023 designate storage systems as essential components of power-sector planning. Together, the National Electricity Plan and RAP framework outline a clear roadmap for scaling up energy storage, strengthening grid stability, and accelerating India’s clean-energy transition.