Energy Storage

“The addition of microgrids creates opportunities for developers to penetrate areas which were not previously explored while allowing the government to meet its renewable energy targets,” says Dr Jayashri Ravishankar—senior lecturer at the University of New South Wales (UNSW), Sydney—in an interview with pv magazine.

The state bus company had originally sought central government funding for 250 vehicles but was given the green light for the smaller figure. A pre-bid meeting related to the tender is planned on Friday.

Bids are invited for design, supply, installation and commissioning of solar home cooking systems in five districts of different states (Meghalaya, Chhattisharh, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat). Bidding closes on November 8.

Manufacturers have been invited to compete for the tender by submitting expressions of interest by October 22. The vehicles must be ready to hit state roads by the end of March.

Plans to develop an 18 GWh lithium-ion battery factory in northern Queensland have reached an important milestone with the project feasibility study submitted to the Queensland government.

EU industry body EUROBAT has called for the bloc to adopt a battery industrial strategy and has pushed the claims of domestic manufacturers in the same manner as India has, as the race hots up to dominate the global energy storage market.

Plans for a gigawatt factory in Saudi Arabia, bullet-proof warranties and an international vanadium rental service are propelling a new generation of batteries into the energy storage big league. Pioneers of redox flow technology claim that they can put an end to the degradation and safety issues afflicting lithium-ion batteries. They also expect imminent economies of scale to reduce the cost of bulk energy storage and unlock new markets for solar power.

India’s transition toward electric vehicles and renewable generation makes a strong case for grid-scale battery storage. And with the government going all out to ensure that demand is met through local manufacturing, ample opportunity is being created for joint ventures – as the country, at present, lacks the requisite experience.

A British study has found co-location of solar and storage may accelerate the deployment of profitable merchant renewable energy projects in the United Kingdom. The report predicts installed solar capacity in the U.K. could increase from around 13 GW next year to 19 GW in 2030 and 32 GW in 2040.

The projects—in various capacities ranging between 1 KWp and 25 KWp—are to be set up across the state. Proposals can be submitted till October 4.