Utility Scale Storage

Australian-born vanadium redox flow technology and new homegrown electrolyte sources are set to bulk up renewable energy storage options in the Pacific region and plug the gap left by lithium supply-chain issues. Natalie Filatoff reports from Sydney.

ReNew Power, a Nasdaq-listed Indian developer, has secured $1 billion in external commercial borrowings for a 1.3 GW wind-solar energy project, backed by up to 100 MWh of battery storage. The project is co-owned by Japanese investor Mitsui and will supply round-the-clock power under a 25-year power purchase agreement.  

Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd. has started accepting bids to develop 1,000 MWh (500 MW x two hours) of grid-connected battery energy storage systems in Gujarat.

Renewables major Greenko will develop 375 MW to 400 MW of solar and wind capacity to power Hindalco’s aluminum smeltering operations in Odisha. It will back the renewables generation with hydro pump storage capacity in Andhra Pradesh to ensure 100 MW of round-the-clock supply to Hindalco.

New research from Stanford University researcher Mark Jacobson outlines how 145 countries could meet 100% of their business-as-usual energy needs with wind, water, solar and energy storage. The study finds that in all the countries considered, lower-cost energy and other benefits mean the required investment for transition is paid off within six years. The study also estimates that worldwide, such a transition would create 28 million more jobs than it lost.

NTPC, India’s largest power utility, will use Ohmium’s PEM electrolyzer for green hydrogen generation at its NETRA campus. Delhi-based Spirare Energy will provide EPC services for the plant.

Wood Mackenzie said it expects the United States and China to represent 75% of global energy storage demand in a highly consolidated market.

NTPC, as a project management consultant to Unión Eléctrica de Cuba (UNE), has launched bids to develop 1.15 GW of grid-connected solar and 150 MW/150 MWh battery storage projects in Cuba. The prospective developer will execute the project on a ‘build-own-operate-transfer’ basis and transfer to UNE after 25 years.

A new report by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) examines the challenges before India in achieving its ambitious target of having 500 GW non-fossil fuel capacity and meeting 50% of its energy requirements from renewables by 2030. It also discusses feasible pathways for achieving these.

India will see a cumulative demand for around 600 GWh of lithium-ion batteries from 2021 to 2030 across all segments. The recycling volume coming from the deployment of these batteries will be 125 GWh by 2030.