Indian Policy makers join 2nd India Energy Storage Policy Forum to discuss National Energy Storage Policy

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The objective of this forum is to have a dialogue between the industry thought leaders and the policymakers to identify policy priorities that can drive the adoption of energy storage, Microgrid, and Electric Vehicle technologies in India. This forum will facilitate one on one discussions between the industry stakeholders and the regulatory bodies & tender (Solar + Storage, ESS & EV) authorities. The sessions include:

  • Energy Storage for RE Integration, Electricity Grid and Off-Grids
  • Advanced energy storage (Battery) manufacturing & ecosystem (Components, Raw materials, Equipment) creation
  • Electric Vehicle & charging infrastructure for India

Dr. V. K. Saraswat, Member, NITI Aayog is the keynote speaker of the forum. Representatives from various countries like the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Government of Western Australia, France, UK, USA and Norway will discuss on the Bi-lateral agreements and foreign trade policies on EVs and energy storage. Central Govt ministries such as Ministry of Power, Ministry of New & Renewable Energy, Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Ministry of Science & Technology, Ministry of Railways will be present at the forum.

National labs working in the space of energy storage and battery technologies such as Central Electro Chemical Research Institute (CECRI) , Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology (IMMT), National Chemical Laboratory (NCL), Centre for Materials for Electronics Technology (C-MET), Non Ferrous Materials Technology Development Centre (NFTDC), International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials (ARCI), National Physical Laboratory (NPL- India), Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), National Research Development Corporation (NRDC) will discuss on indigenous battery manufacturing, R&D and eco-system creation.

Central Electricity Authority (CEA), Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC), Skill Council for Green Jobs (SGGJ), National Smart Grid Mission (NSGM) will discuss on policy creation and future roadmap for energy storage in India.

India’s energy storage sector is at the nascent stage. In the last 4 years, various energy storage tenders were floated by central and state authorities to demonstrate the technologies and resolve the grid and renewable issues. Tender authorities like Rajasthan Electronics & Instruments Limited (REIL), Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), National Thermal Power Corporation Limited (NTPC) and Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) Ltd will join the forum to discuss the challenges and gather industry inputs for future projects.

As part of the forum, a utility roundtable will be organized with active participation from TATA Power- DDL, BSES- Rajdhani, CESC- Kolkata and other state utilities and regulatory commissions. To have a dialogue on EV opportunities representatives from Automotive Research Association of India, International Centre for Automotive Technology (ICAT) and Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) will be joining the forum.

Dr. Rahul Walawalkar, Executive Director, India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA) said, “We’re excited to host the 2nd India Energy Storage Policy Forum at the time when Indian government is all set to launch the National Energy Storage Mission. By organizing this policy forum we’re bringing together the industry thought leaders and policymakers to discuss on India’s policy landscape and its way forward. IESA estimates the market for energy storage would grow to over 300 GWh during 2018-25 and India is expected to attract investment in 2-4 Giga factories for advanced Li-ion batteries, attracting over $3Billion in investments in next 3 years”.

Energy storage has almost 20 different applications in India such as renewable integration, grid ancillary services, diesel minimization, microgrids for energy access and campuses as well as electric vehicles and charging infrastructure. India’s energy storage market is growing but still, there is a supply-demand gap. Opportunities include manufacturing, assembling, energy storage project development, equipment supply, R&D of technology enhancement and much more. This extensive market has intrigued many foreign technology players as well as Indian companies to explore the sector.

The Government is also creating encouraging policies like FAME India Initiative under NEMMP, draft energy storage Roadmap,
National Smart Grid Mission (NSGM) and draft National Microgrid policy, Energy Storage staff paper By CERC, BIS Energy Storage Standards to boost the Indian energy storage market. Various states like Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, and Rajasthan are also taking the first step toward EV and energy storage policy creation to boost the market. MNRE is also creating National Energy Storage Mission (NESM) to catalyze the adoption of manufacturing in
India.