Energy Storage Pro Feb-Mar Issue 2021

Empowering, Insightful, Engaging

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ENERGY STORAGE CONSIDERATIONS:

Applications, Issues And Solutions

Turn to read the CONVERSATION WITH MR. PANKAJ BATRA Project Director, SARI/EI/IRADe

OPINION

INSIGHTS

PERSPECTIVE

Need For A Clear-cut Policy And Regulatory Framework For Energy Storage Expansion In India

Role of energy storage in a RE powered microgrid solution

How Battery Storage Technology Paves Way For A Renewablepowered Future?

CONTENT NEWS

IN CONVERSATION

04

07 PANKAJ BATRA Project Director, SARI/EI/IRADe

OPINION

PERSPECTIVES

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17

Need For A Clear-cut Policy And Regulatory Framework For Energy Storage Expansion In India

How Battery Storage Technology Paves Way For A Renewablepowered Future?

INSIGHTS

12

Energy Storage Considerations: Applications, Issues And Solutions

14

India’s Battery Storage Market Is A Sleeping Giant The states must take up the mantle of utility-scale battery deployment

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Role of energy storage in a RE powered microgrid solution

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EMOBILITY + | JAN FEB ISSUE 2020

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GLOBAL NEWS WÄRTSILÄ SELECTED AS A PREFERRED SUPPLIER FOR AGL ENERGY’S UP TO 1,000 MW GRID-SCALE ENERGY STORAGE PLANS

AUSTRALIA’S FIRST GRID-SCALE SOLAR-PLUS-VANADIUM FLOW BATTERY TO BE BUILT IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA

AGL Energy Limited, one of Australia’s leading integrated energy companies, has selected Wärtsilä as one of the two suppliers for their up to 1,000 MW grid-scale energy storage plans. Wärtsilä has signed a non-exclusive five-year Large Scale Storage System Frame Agreement to supply energy storage projects in partnership with AGL. This agreement will reduce tender timeframes for individual projects, enabling faster project schedules and commercial operation.

In 2020, AGL announced plans to develop energy storage installations near the Loy Yang A power station in Victoria (200 MW), Liddell power station (150 MW) and Broken Hill (50 MW) in New South Wales and Torrens Island (250 MW) in South Australia. The grid-scale energy storage plans will play a key role in Australian energy industry’s transition from traditional fossil fuels towards cleaner energy.

Australia’s first ever utility-scale vanadium flow battery is set to be installed in regional South Australia, aiming to demonstrate the potential impact that flow batteries could provide in reaching the energy storage target in the Australian Government’s first Low Emissions Technology Statement. On behalf of the Australian Government, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has announced $5.7 million in funding to Yadlamalka Energy Pty Ltd (Yadlamalka Energy) to support the installation of a utility-scale vanadium flow battery at Neuroodla, near Hawker in South Australia. The $20.3 million project will colocate a 2 MW / 8 MWh vanadium flow battery with a 6 MW solar PV array. It will connect to the National Electricity Market (NEM) to demonstrate the potential for grid-connected vanadium flow batteries to provide energy and frequency control ancillary services (FCAS). The battery for Yadlamalka Energy will be supplied by Invinity Energy Systems.

ASIA PACIFIC FTM STORAGE COSTS TO DECLINE 30% BY 2025 All-in front-of-the-meter (FTM) battery storage system costs in Asia Pacific markets could decline by more than 30% by 2025, says Wood Mackenzie. Storage system prices fell faster than anticipated in 2020, the biggest driver being battery price reductions. Improvements in battery energy density also contributed to lower overall balance of system (BOS) components and associated costs. World leader China currently sets the record for lowest all-in costs globally. The country’s 2-hour duration all-in FTM system cost is expected to decline 33% to US$369 per kilowatt (kW) in 2025 compared to US$554/kW last year. As a battery powerhouse, the country has benefitted from favourable policy landscape and domestic supply chain. China is also the world’s largest lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries producer and demand centre. The other leading battery chemistry, nickel manganese cobalt (NMC), dominates the rest of Asia Pacific. Over the past decade, rapid rise in the demand of electric vehicles (EVs) has driven down the cost of lithium-ion batteries by more than 85% (since 2010). NMC batteries are suitable for EV and energy storage applications due to their high energy density and robust cycle life. However, LFP batteries are also being considered for use in energy storage applications in recent years. Differences lie in the energy density, fire risk and degradation behaviour.

FEB - MAR ISSUE 2021

IHS MARKIT: ENERGY STORAGE MARKET TO MORE THAN DOUBLE IN 2021 The energy storage market is on track for a record year in 2021 with annual installations set to exceed 10 GW for the first time, up from 4.5 GW in 2020, according to a new report from IHS Markit (NYSE: INFO), a world leader in critical information, analytics and solutions.

United States continues to dominate market, but APAC demand accelerates: The United States will account for 50% of the global market in 2021 following a threefold increase from the prior year as energy storage begins to provide power during times of peak demand at a significantly wider scale. IHS Markit expects the United States to continue to extend its dominance of the global market, gaining market share until 2023 when the project pipeline reduces. However, from 2025 aggressive decarbonization plans in mainland China will lead to rapid growth in the region, driving Asia Pacific to account for 44% of annual installations by 2030.

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INDIA NEEDS TO BE READY TO RIDE THE ENERGY STORAGE WAVE: IEEFA Battery storage, green hydrogen and flexible coal-fired power generation can help India address its next big challenge of integrating large-scale variable renewable energy into the electricity grid over the next decade, according to a new report from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA). The International Energy Agency (IEA) in its India Energy Outlook 2021 says India has the potential to become a world leader in battery storage, predicting that it could add 140-200 gigawatts (GW) of battery capacity by 2040 – the largest of any country and more than 100 times as much as currently installed in the U.S. The report calls for policy support for a time-of-day pricing mechanism to incentivise capital investment in key grid-firming solutions to ensure flexible, reliable peak-time power supply. The report also looks at the experiences of leaders in integrating large-scale renewables, such as Germany and the states of South Australia and California, in the context of the Indian electricity market.

TATA POWER DELHI DISTRIBUTION COLLABORATES WITH NEXCHARGE TO POWER UP INDIA’S FIRST GRID CONNECTED COMMUNITY ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEM Tata Power-DDL, a leading Power Distribution utility supplying electricity to a populace of 7 million in North Delhi, collaborated with Nexcharge, a joint venture between Exide India, Leclanché, Switzerland launched India’s First Grid Connected Community Energy Storage System (CESS) in Rani Bagh, New Delhi. The installation of the 150KW/528KWH CESS at Ranibagh Substation will improve the supply reliability at the distribution level that is mainly at load centre to mitigate peak load on Distribution Transformers. The key feature of CESS is to support the Distribution Transformers in managing the peak load, voltage regulation, power factor improvement, frequency regulation and deviation settlement mechanism. Also, the system has black start feature, because of which during outage of distribution transformers or during supply fail condition, the battery is connected to the privileged bus and can provide 150KW for 4 hours duration to consumers providing critical services like hospitals, commercial complexes, Delhi Jal Board etc.

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WÄRTSILÄ’S FLEXIBLE FLOATING BARGEMOUNTED ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEM WILL AID A PHILIPPINE OPERATOR IN MEETING GRID REQUIREMENTS Therma Marine Inc. (TMI), a subsidiary of Aboitiz Power Corporation, one of the Philippines’ leading companies involved in power generation, distribution, and retail electricity services, has ordered a bargemounted 54 MW / 32 MWh energy storage system to be delivered by Wärtsilä on an engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) basis. The Wärtsilä barge will be placed next to TMI’s existing thermal power barge of a total of 100 MW in the municipality of Maco in the province of Davao de Oro. The order was placed in September 2020. The project will be handled on a fast-track basis, with delivery scheduled to be completed in Q4 2021.

This will be the first ever deployment of a floating energy storage solution in the South East Asia region. It will involve placing ten Wärtsilä GridSolv Max systems, supported by the company’s advanced GEMS energy management platform , aboard a floating barge. The solution will provide flexibility for TMI in their ancillary service contract with the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines. Wärtsilä’s GridSolv Max is an advanced energy storage solution that is designed for streamlined installation and integration, significantly increasing energy density and system reliability to meet customer energy needs while also adequately future-proofing their hardware assets.

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VRB ENERGY TO SET UP A 100MW SOLAR & STORAGE PROJECT IN HUBEI PROVINCE IN CHINA VRB Energy announced a framework agreement for a 100 megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) and 100MW / 500MWh vanadium flow battery integrated power station project in Xiangyang, Hubei Province. The agreement also includes construction of the first 50MW per annum of a new 1,000MW per annum VRB-ESS® “Gigafactory” manufacturing facility, and a vanadium flow battery intelligent energy research and development (R&D) institute. The project builds upon the success of a “PV+VRB” project of 3MW PV and 3MW / 12MWh VRB-ESS® in Xiangyang executed with Pingfan New Energy in 2019, which further validates the business model and the technology as ideally suited for integration of the daily cycling of solar PV onto utility grids. VRB Energy’s 100MW project in Hubei is among a growing number of 100MW flow battery projects being prioritized in China as part of its national energy storage policy and accelerated infrastructure investment in support of post-Covid economic growth. In addition, provinces from Xinjiang to Shandong are now requiring minimums of 5% to 20% energy storage to be installed with new solar and wind power development.

FEB - MAR ISSUE 2021

NEOEN COMPLETES FINANCING FOR 300 MW VICTORIAN BIG BATTERY IN AUSTRALIA Neoen, one of the world’s leading and fastest-growing producers of exclusively renewable energy, has completed financial close on the Victorian Big Battery, a 300 MW / 450MWh battery storage facility located near Geelong, in Victoria. The project will be delivered in collaboration with Tesla and network partner AusNet Services. Owned and operated by Neoen, the Victorian Big Battery will be one of the largest batteries in the world, providing stability to Victoria’s transmission network. Construction has already commenced, providing a well-timed economic boost for the Geelong region, with the project on track to be delivered before the next Australian summer. The System Integrity Protection Scheme (SIPS) contract will run until 2032, unlocking up to 250 MW of additional peak capacity on the existing Victoria to New South Wales Interconnector (VNI) over the next decade of Australian summers. Energy storage is a priority technology under the Australian Federal Government’s Technology Investment Roadmap, as an enabler of cost effective and reliable low emission electricity. The Victorian Big Battery will contribute to the dispatchable resources needed to underpin the increasing share of renewable energy that will make up Australia’s future energy mix.

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IN CONVERSATION

PANKAJ BATRA Project Director, SARI/EI/IRADe

In an exclusive interview with Energy Storage Pro magazine, Mr. Pankaj Batra - Project Director, SARI/EI/IRADe gave us great insights on the main developments in the Indian energy storage industry. He also spoke about the major challenges the industry faces and the steps the government should take in this regard. He also gave us insights about the future of the storage sector.

Please tell us what have been the main developments in the Indian Energy storage space in the last few years.?

Use of energy storage has now become critical to take care of the intermittencies of the increasing deployment of variable renewable energy like wind and solar power, globally, as well as in India.

Pumped storage hydro power plants have long been the main bulk energy storage devices globally since the early 1900s, for evening out load variations. So, also in India. The first pumped storage power plant in India was set up in 1970 in Nagarjunasagar in Telangana. The first experiment of a new type of energy storage in India started with testing of a sodium sulphur grid scale battery storage (180 KW/1.080 MWhr) at NETRA, the Research Wing of NTPC Ltd. in the year 2016, put up

by NGK Japan, for free, for about 6 months to test its efficacy. Later, two technologies of grid scale battery storage, of 0.5 MW, 250 kWh each, for ‘Advanced Lead Acid’ and ‘Lithium Ion’ were set up at the Powergrid sub-station at

FEB - MAR ISSUE 2021

Puducherry, with USAID assistance, in the year 2017, as pilot projects.

The importance of Energy Storage in India, started with formation of India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA), an industry alliance, in 2012, through dissemination of knowledge of energy storage in India, and by India Smart Grid Forum through formation of Working Groups in the field of smart grid, one of the principal components of which was integration of renewables to the grid. Central Electricity Authority, the technical arm of the Ministry of Power, was doing its own studies on integration of renewables to the grid, including through Committees constituted by the Ministry of Power and submission of Reports to them for policy action, on the subject. A series of knowledge dissemination Smart Grid Workshops were conducted on a Regional basis, for State Electricity Regulators and Power Utilities, jointly by CEA and India Smart Grid Forum in the years 2013 and 2014, in which a Session on Energy Storage was also included, seeing the increasing importance of the same globally.

The Government of India, in their initiative to convert the fossil fuel based energy (diesel generating sets) to green energy in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, called for bids for setting up solar plus storage in the islands in the year 2015. After invitation of bids and cancellations, due to apprehensions of price, NLC commissioned the 20 MW solar plant, coupled with 8 MWh battery at Dollygunj and Attampahad in south Andaman, on June 30, 2020.

Recently, in November 2020, SunSource Energy, won a Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) tender, to develop a 4 MW ac gridconnected floating solar PV power project, along with a 2 MW/1 MWh Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) in the Reservoir of Kalpong river, Kalpong Hydroelectric Project (KHEP) Dam, Diglipur, North Andaman.

A policy of hybrid renewable+storage was taken out by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India in 2018. Bids were called by SECI (Solar Energy Corporation of India) for the world’s largest renewables-plusstorage bid of 1200 MW, with six

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hours of assured peaking supply of 600 MW. Against this, Greenko won a bid for renewable plus storage project of 900 MW, using the closed loop pumped storage hydro power plant (as distinguished from the river based or open loop pumped storage hydro power plant) as the storage device, with a weighted average tariff of Rs. 4.04 per unit for 25 years and is under execution. The other 300 MW was won by Renew Power, using battery storage. Greenko is, in fact, setting up a 1,200-MW Pinnapuram closed loop pumped storage plant in Andhra Pradesh, with a 2,000MW solar plant and a 400-MW wind farm.

There are a number of advantages of a closed loop pumped storage plant, as compared to the river based one, in terms of a much shorter gestation period and much lesser cost for setting this up, besides a lesser environmental impact. Closed loop pumped storage, in India, was, in fact, pioneered by WBSEDCL (West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Ltd.), which has been operating the 900 MW Purulia closed loop Pumped Storage in the Ajodhya Hill in West Bengal since 2007. WBSEDCL is also setting up another closed loop pumped storage project, the 1000 MW Turga Pumped Hydro Storage Project in West Bengal in the same area.

Further, a renewable+storage bid called by SECI for 400 MW ‘roundthe-clock’ renewables tender to supply 24-hour electricity to NDMC, New Delhi, and Dadra & Nagar Haveli was won by Renew power in May 2020, at an even lower initial rate, i.e. Rs. 2.90 per unit, to be increased by 3% per year for the first 15 years and staying constant thereafter for the next 10 years.

Energy storage also helps in deferral of augmentation of transmission and distribution infrastructure, especially in crowded places, where space for expansion is at a premium, besides other advantages. TATA’s NDPL is the first electricity distribution utility in India to use grid scale battery storage in the distribution side. Tata Power, The AES Corporation (NYSE:AES) and Mitsubishi Corporation, in February 2019, commissioned India’s first gridscale battery-based energy storage system in Rohini, Delhi. The 10 Megawatt MW grid-connected system, owned by AES and Mitsubishi Corporation, has been commissioned to provide grid stabilization, better peak load management, add system flexibility, enhance reliability and protect critical facilities for 2 million consumers served by the company.

BSES, one of the other distribution utilities in Delhi, is doing likewise.

BRPL is part of UI-ASSIST (US-India collAborative for smart diStribution System wIth STorage) wherein BRPL shall carry out three pilots by installing 330 kWH of Battery Energy Storage System. The brief details of the pilot is provided below. The detailed scope of work can be assessed at https://uiassist.org/home/ Project 1: Demonstration of gridscale energy storage systems for a selected distribution/LT feeder having substantial penetration of rooftop Solar PV systems; Project 2: Smart Meters and Energy Storage Systems for selected Research Institutions (under HT category, having existing rooftop Solar PV installations) Project 3: Demonstration of gridscale energy storage systems for a selected group housing society having rooftop Solar PV power plant installed.

Besides this, India has large ambitions for electric vehicles in the future. It is proposing to mandate electrifying all two- and three-wheelers in the future, starting 2023. In March 2019, the government of India established the National Mission on Transformative Mobility and Battery Storage, a twelve department undertaking, with NITI Aayog as the Chairman. The Department of Heavy Industry (DHI) Ministry, in July 2019, invited proposals from urban local bodies, municipal corporations, PSU (state/central) and public/private entities for developing EV 1000 charging stations in different cities, with incentives under the FAME II Scheme, ranging from 50% to 100%, depending on the category. Niti Aayog has proposed an integrated program to facilitate Advance Chemistry Cells (ACC) and battery storage manufacturing in the country. India’s expected demand for advanced batteries till 2030 is about 1100 GWh across different use cases. A target of 50 GWh capacity of advanced battery storage manufacturing in India, is proposed under the program, through commissioning of 4-5 Giga-scale factories by 2025. All these initiatives bode well for the future of energy storage in India.

New developments in storage are taking place globally, which have been claimed to be price competitive with the other storage technologies. Gravity systems of solid Blocks by Energy Vault and Liquefied Air Energy Storage are two such technologies. These have so far not been used in India, and are in the initial stages globally. If these prove to be viable, these could find a way to India in the future.

SECI) has also called for a bid for 20 MW (AC) solar PV power plant (50 MWp DC) with 20 MW/50 MWh Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) at Phyang in Leh, Ladakh.

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In your view, what are the major challenges for the Indian storage sector presently and how can they be overcome?

In the policy side, the Government of India has taken many initiatives to boost the energy storage sector.

The next step is to facilitate regulations by the State Electricity Regulators. This is both on the grid scale energy storage and the electric vehicles. In the grid scale battery storage side, the market should be opened up for ancillary services for frequency regulation.

Electric Storage would be one of the parties who could bid into that, besides others. A template of cost benefit analysis should be prepared by the State Electricity Regulator for use of energy storage in transmission and distribution systems, as a grid element for infrastructure deferral. In the electric vehicle storage side, the next step for the regulators is for setting the tariff for charging stations, taking into account the subsidies given by the Government of India, as well as the State Governments, as well as the ultimate tariff charged by the charging station to vehicle owners, for those charging stations, which have received subsidies.

Widespread deployment of energy storage should be backed by standardization to boost confidence among the users, and usher in competition among the producers.

These are rapidly evolving globally through IEC Standards.

Correspondingly, BIS is also either adopting or adapting these standards, and has even taken the lead in taking out generic standards in the Battery Management System, which do not exist internationally.

What steps should the government take to boost the storage sector in India especially after having faced the pandemic ?

One of the factors noticed during the Pandemic, which affected the fossil fuel based power stations, were the supply chain risks for fuel. Due to lesser requirements, oil and gas supplies were required to be reduced.

The Take or Pay clause in the fuel supply agreement caused financial loss to the distribution utilities. In such a case, renewable plus storage would have eliminated the supply chain risk for fuel supply.

How do you think technological innovation and advancement will play a role in enhancing this sector?

Technological innovation and advancement results in new types of energy storage and makes the existing storage more efficient. There is an ever increasing amount of research going on in the field of storage.

Closed loop pumped storage power plants, Gravity system of solid Blocks by Energy Vault and Liquefied Air Energy Storage are three such examples. Research continues on flow batteries to improve their efficacy in different use cases. Hydrogen fuel cell and aluminium fuel cell are also future promising technologies. Since India is the largest producer of aluminium in the world, I expect this area of storage to grow very fast in India. All these will result in cheaper and viable storage systems.

Could you please give us an insight into what the next 5 years look like for the storage sector in India and globally?

Deployment of energy storage has been rising rapidly globally. The yearly deployment, as per an IEA Report is depicted in the figure below.

This shows that the behind the meter installations are increasing more rapidly, likely due to resilience issues, in times of extreme weather conditions.

Many countries are aiming to become neutral by 2050. India also harbours these ambitions.

India has set a target of 450 GW renewable energy by 2030. With increasing deployment of variable renewable energy, the role of storage is bound to increase.

Renewable plus storage is likely to expand in a big way in India, which is more grid friendly, would result in cheaper power supply and lesser emissions. Competitively bid ancillary service Regulations are likely to open the doors for deployment of storage in a big way.

Cost benefit analysis template for strengthening of transmission and distribution system vs deployment of energy storage would make it a natural corollary to check which is cheaper, thereby making it quicker to take decisions on whether to deploy storage.

(Courtesy : USAID G-T-G Website, https://www.gtg-india.com/grid-connectedbattery-energy-storage-system-bess/)

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All in all, energy storage is set to experience strong growth in the future, in India, as well as globally.

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OPINION NEED FOR A CLEAR-CUT POLICY AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK FOR ENERGY STORAGE EXPANSION IN INDIA

The Energy Storage Solutions (ESS) market has various well-defined consumers, such as Electric Vehicles (EVs), Solar & Wind developers, individuals with remote access to electricity and the ones dependent on generator sets. These are just the obvious uses of energy storage. To put things into perspective, energy storage devices can power the 253 million+ vehicles currently traversing the roads of India. However, if India must take advantage of the ESS revolution, one needs to draw inference from the inception of the global solar energy market.

Contrary to popular belief, Germany is to be credited for the creation of the solar market.

The focus shifted to China as it created a sustainable ecosystem, by growing the number of manufacturers and simultaneously creating an internal demand for RE consumption, through incentives and removal of barriers. Eventually, the Chinese solar market achieved a significant scale, which cast a shadow over German solar operations. Today, 90% of the solar panels supplied globally are of Chinese origin. If India must establish a workable ESS model, then it is advisable that we take some inspiration from the successful Chinese solar energy policies.

"The economies of scale can be adopted through substantial support in the production and demand segment by the Government."

However, investing in energy storage devices is an expensive affair. The EPC cost of battery storage is expected to touch $250 - $270 per kilowatt hour, which is extremely high. But investment in the required technology is critical. While expensive at the onset, the apt technological production and scale is likely to reduce this cost by one fifth and bring it down to approximately $50 within a span of a couple of years (mid-term).

Simultaneously, the current fad of EVs is also bound to create more demand for ESS, thereby kicking in the concept of economies of scale.

The economies of scale can be adopted through substantial support in the production and demand segment by the Government.

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Production Support

Demand Support

The government's current subsidies such as the Performance Linked Schemes aren't enough to spurt growth in the battery

Consumption patterns play a key role in deciding the future of any business segment. Hence, the authorities must offer a boost in the policy that will encourage energy storage adoption - from a rooftop energy consumer (C&I and residential segment) to a solar developer with RE assets. Incentives such as capital & interest subsidy and encouraging price dynamics in the sale of power, will play a crucial role in bolstering the ecosystem. Currently, the sale of power by ESS owners is controlled by DISCOMs and limited by licensing, thus hindering the profitability. Whereas the ideal framework should allow entities with solar storage solutions to sell power freely which will be viable only through a free market mechanism. Ergo, it is safe to indicate that a de-licensing policy by the government will generate demand and give rise to budding entrepreneurs in the sector, thus creating a win-win situation.

manufacturing segment as the investment commitment outweighs the probable future incentives. Rather, the authorities need to focus on securing more raw material such as Brine, at affordable costs, that will facilitate the production of Lithium Ion. Secondly, the government should aggressively pursue more manufacturers - from various segments of the energy storage supply chain - to be part of the ecosystem. Currently, while a handful of companies have indicated their intent to “manufacture” batteries, the fine print of the operations clearly indicate that will be simply "assembling" the final product in India, while importing the parts. The government must implement a transitional shift from "Assembling in India" to actually "Making in India", to make a noteworthy impact and ensure the rightful claim to the $50 billion investment opportunity, rather than China.

ANIMESH DAMANI Managing Partner, A r t h a E n er g y R e s o u r c e s ( A E R )

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INSIGHTS INDIA’S BATTERY STORAGE MARKET IS A SLEEPING GIANT The states must take up the mantle of utility-scale battery deployment

Grid integration of large-scale variable renewables will be one of India’s biggest challenges as it aspires to decarbonise its power economy through deployment of 450 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy (RE) by 2030. Reaching this target from the current installed renewable capacity of 93GW will require average annual renewable capacity additions of ~35GW. The International Energy Agency’s (IEA) India Energy Outlook 2021 suggests India could further double its renewables capacity to 900GW by 2040. With record low solar tariffs of below Rs2.00/kWh (US$27/MWh), renewables in India are now extremely cost competitive with coal-fired power and are set to be the dominant source of power supply for decades to come.

Currently, renewables form 10% of India’s total power generation and that share will increase to 31% by 2030 with 450GW of renewables coming online. While integration of large-scale variable renewables is one of the biggest challenges for the transition of India’s power market, leaders in large-scale renewable penetration, such as Germany with 46%, South Australia with 60% and California with 36% of total generation coming from renewables, show that it can be done.

As the share of variable renewable generation continues to increase, India’s power system will have to evolve and modernise to respond to grid stability challenges. There is a need for an accelerated deployment of assets such as utility-scale battery storage in order to store power when it is available in abundance and provide firm power later, during the evening peak hours or at other times when generation is low but demand is high.

The cost of standalone lithium-ion battery storage systems globally has plummeted in the last decade from US$1,100/kWh in 2010 to US$137/kWh in 2020. Bloomberg NEF (BNEF) projects costs will decline a further 55% to US$58/kWh by 2030.

International Energy Agency’s (IEA) latest report on India Energy outlook projects that India could have 140-200GW of battery storage capacity by 2040 — potentially a third of total battery storage capacity in the world by then.

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International Energy Agency’s (IEA) latest report on India Energy outlook projects that India could have 140-200GW of battery storage capacity by 2040 — potentially a third of total battery storage capacity in the world by then."

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With the influx of ultra-cheap renewables, global power markets such as Australia, the U.S. and U.K. have leveraged this cost deflation in battery storage to strengthen their grids. Grid-scale batteries have proven to be an important grid management tool to deal with frequency fluctuations on the grid.

Australia’s battery storage market is booming with development of utility-scale standalone battery storage projects across its National Energy Market (NEM).

Increased penetration of renewables into Australia’s grid (26.5% of total electricity in 2020 came from renewables) has driven the demand for Frequency Control Ancillary Services (FCAS) — an important grid management service. Energy utilities operating in the NEM are accelerating standalone battery storage deployment as FCAS requirements surge on the national grid.

In contrast to the Australian market which is predominantly driven by market economics, the accelerated uptake of batteries in the U.S. market is being driven by state-level enforcement of battery storage requirements as well as subsidy support through tax credit incentives.

The states of California, Oregon, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey and Virginia have defined capacity targets for the state utilities for battery storage.

In 2020, the U.S. battery market surpassed 1GW of battery storage installation and US$1bn of market value, a doubling of capacity addition compared to 2019. In the third quarter of 2020 alone, the battery installation number was 476MW (including behind-themeter residential and non-residential battery storage capacity).

According to energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie, the U.S. market is expected to reach 7.5GW in 2025, which amounts to a sixfold growth from 2020.

Despite the different drivers behind the deployment of batteries in different markets, the basic model to deploy standalone batteries is somewhat similar.

Utility-scale batteries with 4 hours of storage capacity are co-located with end-of-life coal-fired power plants to have easy access to the same network connectivity as well as utilise the same patch of land. Also, the battery systems fill the gap in lost capacity left by the retirement of the end-of-life coal-fired power plants.

Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), the Indian government-owned agency, has led the way for utilityscale battery deployment by implementing multiple RE plus battery storage auctions that mandate round-theclock RE power supply. However, SECI’s efforts alone will not suffice to ensure uptake of the battery storage

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needed to modernise India’s grid in order to be able to handle the large injection of variable renewables.

States with large load centres, such as Maharashtra, Delhi NCR, Karnataka, Gujarat and Rajasthan, must now make their own plans for utility-scale battery storage systems.

In IEEFA’s view, a ‘time-of-day’ pricing mechanism that differentiates between peak and off-peak power supply is critical to incentivise investment into such capital-intensive yet important technology solutions.

Additionally, the states could offer viability gap funding (VGF) for battery storage just as they did to support the growth of ultra-mega solar parks a few years ago.

Along with deployment of standalone battery storage assets, there needs to be a focus on creating a domestic value chain for battery manufacturing and recycling. A good starting point to enable this would be to bring batteries under a concessional GST bracket of 5%.

KASHISH SHAH Research Analyst, Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis(IEEFA)

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INSIGHTS ROLE OF ENERGY STORAGE IN A RE POWERED MICROGRID SOLUTION

Microgrids, Renewable energy (RE) and energy storage technologies (EST) are highly promising and frequently discussed topics in the energy community for the last decade. Incensed cybersecurity threats and frequent natural disasters that pose a risk to the electric distribution system have made RE based microgrid solutions a desirable infrastructure for reliable electricity distribution.

Microgrids allow electricity users to safely and reliably disconnect from the utility grid connection and independently serve on-site electric loads. Mass deployment of distributed renewable energy (RE) into the grid enables local generation and utilization of electricity.

This disconnected state is commonly referred to as “islanding” because it’s effectively a small powered system that serves its requirements without transferring power in or out of the island.

The microgrid connects to the power grid through the point of common coupling (PCC). Given the increased microgrid installations, distribution systems pose significant changes in its characteristics compared with the present distribution system. Therefore, suitable control strategies must be adopted to manage these differences and improve overall efficiency. The following figure shows the typical microgrid structure, where PV panels provide energy and EST balances the demand and supply of energy.

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Typical microgrid structure

M a n y v i t a l c o n s i d e r a t i o n s e x i s t f o r t h e e n e r g y s to r a g e system in microgrids. Efficient management of EST, power electronic interfaces, charging and discharging, conversion mechanism of power, reliability, and protection from dangers are the significant considerations for the development of the e n e r g y s t o r a g e sy s t e m i n m i c r o g r i d a p p l i c a t i o n s . T h e following figure describes the impact of an energy storage system on a power system network.

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Load demand profile with Energy storage system (Source : ‘‘An overview of energy storage and its importance in Indian renewable energy sector: Part II —Energy storage applications, benefits and market potential,’’ J. Energy Storage, Oct. 2017.)

Since power generation from the RE generators is fluctuating, it won't be easy to depend on the RE generation (e.g. Solar PV) completely during the shift from the utility grid to the local generation during islanding operation. If no backup generation exists or low power generation cases, the microgrid would only be sustained with EST until the storage capacity is exhausted.

Typically aggregated and distributed energy storage are the two basic configurations of EST for microgrid applications, as shown in the following figure.

Typical ESS configurations (Source: ‘‘Advances and trends of energy storage technology in microgrid,’’ Int. J. Elect. Power Energy Syst., 2013)

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The amount of power flow from distributed energy resources to the PCC bus remains constant for the aggregated system. Moreover, the total capacity of this ESS can be applied to assuage power flow f l u c t u a t i o n s . I f t h e c a p a c i t y o f a n e n e r g y s t o r a g e s y s t e m i n c r e a s e s , t h e c o s t a l s o i n c re a s e s . M a n u f a c t u rin g a n d c o n t r o l l i n g l a r g e - s c a l e e n e r g y s t o r a g e a r e c o m p l e x . T h u s , s m a l l - s c a l e a n d d i s t r i b u t e d e n e rg y s t o ra g e s y s t e m s a r e u t i l i z e d t o a t t a i n r e l i a b l e a n d a d e q u a t e p o w e r r e g u l a t i o n . E n e r g y s t o r a g e d e v ic e s in d is t rib u t e d s t o r a g e c o n f i g u r a t i o n s a r e d i r e c t l y c o n n e c t e d t o s p e c i f i c d i s t r i b u t i v e s o u r c e s w i t h n u m e ro u s in t e rf a c e s .

H o w e v e r , c o n t r o l l i n g p o w e r f l o w i s t h e m a i n c h a l l e n g e f a c e d b y t h e d i s t r i b u t e d s y s t e m . F o l l o w in g a re s o m e o f the applications of energy storage systems in power system:

Applications of energy storage systems in power system (Source: ‘Energy storage systems in modern grids—Matrix of technologies and applications,’ J. Energy Storage, May 2016)

Modern storage systems are unique, they are very fast r e s p o n d i n g r e s o u r c e s t h a t c a n g e n e r a te a n d a b s o r b power and, in some cases, regulate real and reactive power quality in an electric distribution system. These capabilities allow storage to serve various roles within a microgrid for instances where customers need u n in t e r r u p t e d i s l a n d i n g , h a v e n o o n - s i t e g e n e r a t i o n , o r need to supplement the on-site generation that exists in their distribution system.

The effectiveness of islanded operation depends on c o o r d i n a t i o n a n d h i g h - s p e e d c o nt r o l a c t i o n – o n t h e scale of milliseconds. The high power and fast response capabilities of battery storage systems (e.g. lithium-ion) will provide effectively instant power to the microgrid for a limited duration of time to bridge an outage period.

Considering the characteristic of distributed RE, energy storage technologies are an alternative solution for the potential utilization of renewable energy in microgrid applications. Continuous research and optimizations are p e r f o r m e d i n th e e n e r g y i n du s t r y t o d e v e l o p E S T s a n d their utilizations in microgrids to manage the decent power balance by storing energy during off-peak hours with reduced cost. Therefore, perfection in EST modelling with optimization characteristics is the key feature of next-generation EST.

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DIBIN CHANDRAN Senior Engineer, Power & Renewables

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PERSPECTIVE HOW BATTERY STORAGE TECHNOLOGY PAVES WAY FOR A RENEWABLE-POWERED FUTURE?

Battery storage systems are emerging as one of the key solutions to effectively integrate high shares of solar and wind renewables in power systems worldwide.

Battery storage systems(BSS) are used to store energy for later use. BSS serves as a crucial hub for the entire electricity grid, right from managing power during peak load periods, enabling energy management and boosting the quality and reliability of power to helping decrease environmental impact. Energy storage also smoothens the integration of variable or intermittent renewable energy sources into the grid by matching supply with demand.

Energy storage serves as a major enabler of a smarter grid. Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) provide a broad range of primary and ancillary services and functions for grid operators. The wide range of applications of energy storage, coupled with the fallings. cost of systems, would likely result in the rapid growth of battery energy storage solutions. Li-ion batteries are emerging as a frontrunner among the battery energy storage technologies. Recently, lithium-ion (Li-ion) has gained pre-eminence as the leading battery technology because of its higher efficiency compared to others. The increasing growth of electric vehicles (EVs) resulted in advancements in Li-ion technologies and a steady decline in the prices of lithium-based batteries.

The potential applications of BSS have gained the attention of a number of stakeholders across the value chain, boosting its considerable growth and paving the way for the next phase of the energy transition and a renewable powered future.

Read on as our experts give their view

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MANOJ GUPTA,

VP-Solar and Waste to Energy Business, Fortum India Pvt Ltd

India, as per its stated goals under the Paris Agreement, aims to reduce its emissions intensity by 33-35 percent by 2030 from the 2005 levels, while increasing the share of non-fossil-fuel-based energy to 40 percent of its total generation capacity. In line with this commitment, the country has set itself a target of achieving 175 GW of renewables-based energy (RE) capacity by 2022, and 450 GW by 2030. This capacity will largely be solarbased and, to a lesser extent, wind-based. Solar installations have witnessed tremendous growth over the past decade; solar is today the fastest-growing s o u r c e o f r e n e w a b l e e n e r g y i n t h e wo r l d a s w e l l a s i n India. Despite the many challenges posed by the Covid19 pandemic, solar power generation continues to be a resilient driver of India’s ambitions of achieving a sustainable energy mix.

The government too is bullish on a RE-powered future.

The proposal put forth in 2020 for a National Renewable Energy Policy for promoting renewable energy and determining renewable purchase obligations is in line with the country’s carbon reduction commitments.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy is exploring the possibility and viability of different models such as wind-solar hybrid; solar with storage; hydrogen, and others. Going by the government support and the interest and the momentum that the solar power sector is witnessing, it is clear that solar will lead the way, complemented by other RE models. The industry has, m e a n w h i l e , s t a r t ed d o m e s t i c e q u i p m e n t m a n u f a c t u r i n g to reduce dependence on foreign imports.

THE NEED FOR BATTERY STORAGE AMIDST INDIA’S RE PLANS

India’s plans for driving the growth of RE involve, among other things, renewable hybrids. Owing to the complementary nature of wind and solar power, windsolar hybrid systems are well-suited to meet India’s energy needs. However, the unpredictable nature of both these types of energy necessitates battery storage to be able to provide round-the-clock power. As we transition towards an energy mix with an increasingly higher proportion of RE, battery storage systems will have a very important role to play in ensuring grid stability. Battery-storage-enabled RE systems can provide clean energy in a controlled and uninterrupted manner by storing the energy generated during the peak RE generation hours and releasing it into the grid during peak demand hours.

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Coupling solar PV with battery storage can provide an extremely cost-effective means of providing affordable, reliable electricity supply to many remote, underserved communities in India. There is yet another reason why battery storage is so important in the RE context. The electricity that’s fed into the power grid should be of the same frequency as the electricity that’s consumed. The variable nature of solar and wind power, however, makes it very challenging for grid operators to maintain the frequency of a pure RE grid. Battery storage can be of tremendous help with frequency management and grid synchronization. The declining prices of batteries make them a viable option for RE storage.

Even electric vehicles (EVs) can serve this purpose.

They can draw power from the grid during peak generation hours, store it in their battery when not they are not in use, and release it back into the grid when needed.

THE WAY AHEAD FOR BATTERY TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION AND ADOPTION

The adoption of energy storage has, in the past, raised some concerns over the financial viability of DISCOMs. It is very important to address these concerns and to ensure that the RE play is a win-win proposition for all stakeholders. Although India has developed battery storage facilities, we need a robust framework to regulate the use of storage systems, as well as clear guidelines for attracting investments.

The Government of India has consistently supported schemes for setting up centralized and distributed REsources. These efforts have succeeded in creating demand, spurring technology advancements, and enabling economies of scale in the RE sector. The National Mission on Transformative Mobility and Battery Storage, launched in 2019, promotes phased manufacturing programmes for battery and EV components and will support the establishment of large-scale integrated battery manufacturing plants in India.

Li-ion batteries are widely used around the world to store energy for EVs and RE systems. However, they aren’t easy to dispose of, and are classified as hazardous waste. India should invest in research and development to try and find means of making batteries that are not only renewable or recyclable, but also cost-effective. Falling costs, coupled with market reforms that reward the speed, accuracy and precision of battery storage systems, will help in driving their widespread, market-driven adoption.

India has made an impressive start in its journey towards its RE goals. Getting there in the targeted time will call for concerted efforts by all stakeholders, guided by a clear policy and regulatory framework, and powered by continuous innovation in battery storage solutions.

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BHUPESH VERMA

Senior Research Analyst, Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy (CSTEP)

DR ANJALI SINGH

Research Scientist, Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy (CSTEP) Battery energy storage (BES) technology is set to play a crucial role in helping India achieve net-zero carbon emission goals. The country is committed to increasing the renewable energy (RE) share in power generation by 40% and reducing carbon emissions by 33-35%, by 2030.

Currently, the share of RE in the primary energy-supply mix is approximately 20%. This is projected to reach 100% by 2050.

The falling costs of RE technologies and the Government’s thrust on deploying green energy create an attractive environment for REinstallation in the country. However, the intermittent nature of RE makes it challenging to integrate it into the grid. BES, by storing t h e e x c e s s e n e r g y a n d f e e d i n g i t t o t h e gr i d , c a n improve the reliability of the grid while providing power system flexibility. This is applicable to off-grid power supply as well.

Of the various energy storage technologies, like pumped-hydro, compressed air, thermal fluid storage, etc., BES—which is compact, fast-ramping, and has a smaller gestation period— is the most preferred. Among the various BES technologies available, lithium-ion batteries (LiBs) are the most popular as they offer better performance characteristics (power and energy density, cycle life, safety, etc.).

LiB technology is currently gaining momentum for utilityscale applications, constituting almost a 90% share in the utility-scale energy projects across the globe. India too has installed a 10 MW LiB energy storage system in Delhi—its first such system—designed to improve the reliability and efficiency of the grid, support peak demand, and aid grid stabilisation, among others.

LiB prices have reduced by about 70% in the last five years, and are expected to decline further, given the global impetus towards electric vehicles and RE deployment.

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Currently, the price of LiBs is approximately USD 137/kWh, which is expected to come down to USD 58/kWh by 2030.However, there are significant challenges in employing the LiB technology.

Presently, Indian battery manufacturers import Li cells from countries such as China, Japan, and Korea, and assemble the modules.

Another concern is that LiBs are being considered primarily for electric vehicle (EV) applications; their use in the RE sector is neglected. Going ahead, it may become difficult to meet India’s rising demand, as the exporters of Li cells will also have to achieve their EV- and RE-deployment goals.

To preempt future supply-chain risks, India needs to start manufacturing these cells domestically.

Considering the scarcity of materials used currently in LiB variants (Ni, Co), alternate battery materials (Li iron phosphate, Li manganese oxide) should be prioritised. Further, emerging battery technologies like LiS, Li air, and solid-state batteries should be explored, as they are better than the conventional LiBs, and their raw materials can easily be sourced domestically.

Also, to boost domestic production, Indian battery manufacturers should utilise the production-linked incentive scheme that provides a substantial financial support of INR 18,000 crore for setting up LiB cell manufacturing.

Moreover, as a sizable number of retired batteries (from EVs) become available in the coming years for secondary use, they can be utilised in RE applications. BES deployment at utility-scale, along with such secondary use, will reduce energy costs and mitigate environmental impact. This should be complemented by a battery recycling ecosystem that enables using recycled materials for domestic-cell manufacturing.

TO BOOST DOMESTIC PRODUCTION, INDIAN BATTERY MANUFACTURERS SHOULD UTILISE THE PRODUCTION-LINKED INCENTIVE SCHEME THAT PROVIDES A SUBSTANTIAL FINANCIAL SUPPORT OF INR 18,000 CRORE FOR SETTING UP LIB CELL MANUFACTURING."

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PERSPECTIVE ENERGY STORAGE CONSIDERATIONS: APPLICATIONS, ISSUES AND SOLUTIONS With daily changes in technology, ways and methods of how we use energy are changing. With increase in the power requirements for smaller devices it has become important to improve the density of energy storage in these devices. With these improvements has also come a wider array of applications for power storage on the electric grid and in electric vehicles (EVs). Energy storage is being increasingly investigated for its potential to provide significant benefits to the interstate transmission grid, and perhaps to local distribution systems and thus to retail electric customers. While energy storage is seen as an enabling technology with the potential to reduce the intermittency and variability of wind and solar resources, energy storage resources would have to be charged by low or zero emission or renewable sources of electricity to ensure a reduction of greenhouse gases.

As a flexible power source, energy storage has many potential applications in renewable energy generation grid integration, power transmission and distribution, distributed generation, micro grid and ancillary services such as frequency regulation, etc.

Advanced energy storage provides an integrated solution to some of the most critical energy needs: electric grid modernization, reliability, and resilience; sustainable mobility; flexibility for a diverse and secure, all-of-theabove electricity generation portfolio; and enhanced economic competitiveness for remote communities and targeted micro-grid solutions. Storage technologies strengthen and stabilize the grid by providing backup power, leveling loads, and offering a range of other energy management services. Electric vehicles (EVs) are also poised to become an integral part of this new grid paradigm as their batteries both draw power from and supply it back to the grid (when beneficial) – while eliminating tailpipe emissions.

To understand this topic in detail, let's read on what our experts have to say...

SUBHAMAY GANGULY, AGM- Energy Storage & Innovation, Amp Energy India

few challenges including peak load demand charge, penalty on low power factor and power cut that need to be addressed and BESS (Battery Energy Storage System) provides a scope to address all these issues.

The Need:

The Applications:

Electricity grid is an instantaneous demand-based system where the supply and demand have to be matched at every instant. Constant adjustment has to be made on the supply side to mitigate predictable or unexpected changes in the demand. Energy storage can play an important role in this balancing act and make the grid more reliable and flexible.

BESS applications in Utility scale are mainly two types, viz. Energy Application (MWh) & Power Application (MW).

Renewable energy, when connected to the electricity grid, creates more uncertainty in the supply side due to inherent variability of irradiance and wind speed.

Storage coupled with PV/wind or a hybrid system minimizes the uncertainty of these natural resources by backing up the power when the supply is more than demand and discharge when it is less.

The main intention of a C&I (Corporate & Industrial) customer is to reduce its electricity bill. There are a

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Energy Application can be further subdivided into 1) Energy Arbitrage, in which, battery is charged from renewable energy during high generation and discharged during higher tariff.

2) Micro-Grid, where the battery is used in parallel to other sources (e.g., PV/Wind/DG etc.) in no electricity zone or island.

Power Application, on the other hand can be subdivided into 1) PV Smoothing, where intermittencies of PV generation have to be mitigated at a specified instant. Due to the very fast response time of BESS almost in mSec, it is able to achieve the goal.

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2) Ancillary Service, due to voltage or frequency variation in Indian grid, it is required to pump (or absorb) reactive or active power from grid respectively. BESS can serve the purpose of providing the extra amount of active/reactive power and stabilize the grid.

Apart from that, in C&I applications, maximum demand charges which are proportional to the maximum load (in Watt) for a certain period of time is to be paid by consumers. BESS can supply the peak power for that period thereby reducing the electricity bill. This application is called Peak Shaving. Load factor (a ratio of average load and peak load) can also be improved in this way and many DISCOMs provide incentive for high load factor. Many times, C&I customers also have to pay a penalty for low power factors. Instead of using separate active power factor correction devices, BESS can serve the purpose by pumping/absorbing reactive power to the grid. Moreover, having a black start facility of BESS gives an edge to replace DG’s used for power cut scenarios.

The Issues:

Key challenges for the widespread deployment of electric energy storage can be divided into two parts, viz. Technical & Non-Technical.

Technical issues of BESS can be categorized as 1. Life cycle: Li-ion battery, which is the most commercially available battery has a life cycle of 4000-5000 cycles. Considering 1 cycle per day, the battery has to be completely replaced after 10-12 years. Hence, considering a 25-year life of the plant, this creates a huge operational cost.

2. Efficiency: Round Trip Efficiency (RTE) of most of the commercially available batteries are in the range of 65-85%, which forces the developer to use higher rating at the Beginning of life (BOL).

3. Degradation: Battery is degraded @ rate of 1.5-2% every year. Hence, throughput from the battery is very low after 10 years.

4. Specific Energy: Sp. Energy varies in the range of 10-150Wh/kg for different battery technology.

5. Safety: Li-ion Batteries have the potential to be dangerous and hence, safety is a big concern.

6. Disposal: From the EVs sold globally in 2017 alone, the waste from the spent lithium-ion batteries could be about 250,000 tonnes, or a half a million cubic metres. This is again a growing concern.

7. High C-rating: Not all battery technologies are available with high C rating (>2C).

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Here, one thing to address is that Li-ion comes with high efficiency (~85%), high Sp. Energy (~120Wh/kg), but having low life cycles and low safety. Whereas technologies like Flow battery are high in safety and life cycle (>10000) but have low Sp. Energy (10-20Wh/kg) and very low efficiency (~65%). Hence, there is no OneStop solution for all.

Non-technical issues are 1) Regulatory Barriers: without any compensation or regulatory mandate, developers are unwilling to make any capital investment 2) Cost Competitiveness: Actual Energy storage cost (e.g., battery) contribution is 70-75% of the total ESS solution cost.

The Solution(s):

Awareness is growing across the world which pushes the policy makers to make regulations favouring uptake of BESS. Let us consider Germany’s primary control reserve (PCR) market. Participants in this market generate revenue by winning a weekly auction and receive remuneration for providing capacity to balance the grid.

Now, battery price is reducing continuously and rapidly.

Lithium-Ion battery prices fell by 80% from 2010-2017 (Source: Bloomberg New Energy Finance, Lithium-ion Battery Price Survey) and falling continuously. Several new technologies are coming in (e.g., Vanadium Redox flow battery, Zinc-air battery) which have a high life cycle, considerably high efficiency and can be a cheaper alternative. Using EV batteries in stationary storage application even though they no longer meet EV performance standards.

Conclusion: Though “storage” and “renewables” are often seen to be equivalent, energy storage isn’t just about integrating intermittent wind and solar output: battery solutions, which can be deployed rapidly and with pinpoint precision, can be used to make the overall grid more efficient and resilient, regardless of the generation sources. This makes the storage story all the more compelling. For these reasons, storage markets are developing much faster than anticipated and battery storage is getting supercharged around the world, riding on the wave of falling battery prices and expanding demand.

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DR AMMU SUSANNA JACOB Senior Research Engineer, Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy (CSTEP) India has set itself a renewable energy (RE) target of 175 GW and 450 GW for 2022 and 2030, respectively. With the country bracing up to meet these targets, and given the intermittent nature of RE, energy storage systems (ESSs) are required to balance the grid.

The most commonly used storage technologies in the Indian grid are pumped-hydro (~96% of the total storage installed) and battery storages. Other storage technologies that can be used are compressed air, flywheels, hydrogen storage, supercapacitors, superconducting magnetic energy storage (SMES), and thermal energy storage (which includes water heaters, ice storage, chilled water storage, and molten salt-based storage).

Applications of energy storage

ESSs have a wide variety of applications in the grid. The four main applications are ancillary services, bulk energy services, transmission and distribution infrastructure services, and customer energy management.

Ancillary services support the smooth and stable operation of the grid by maintaining the grid voltage and frequency within permissible limits (voltage support and frequency regulation). They also manage sudden fluctuations in the load by adjusting the power generation according to demand (load following).

Other ancillary services include spinning reserves and black start. Spinning reserves are standby generators that support the grid during a power shortage.

When there is an unexpected power outage (partial or total blackout of the grid), the system is restored through a black start. ESSs installed at the generation and transmission level can provide these ancillary services.

mismatches in demand. Energy arbitrage is the storage of energy in large-scale energy storage devices when the electricity price is low and its sale when the price is high, leading to revenue generation.

The use of ESSs in the transmission and distribution network helps in delaying upgradation of the network, while easing congestion. It is also useful in city limits where acquiring land for laying high voltage lines is a hassle.

Customer energy management services include using ESSs to provide quality and reliable power, reducing peak demand, and time-shifting customer demand to offpeak periods.

ESSs at different levels of the network

ESSs can be classified based on the duration of the discharge of power as short-term (seconds to minutes), mid-term (minutes to hours), and long-term storages (hours to days). Table 1 shows the suitability of different energy storage technologies for various applications and their levels in the network.

The Way Forward The major challenge in the adoption of ESSs in the grid is their cost. Hence, to improve profitability, a single storage device may be used for different applications, leading to multiple revenue streams. In addition, our energy market and regulatory framework should incentivise storage-specific projects.

(For more details, please refer to our working paper https://cstep.in/publications-details.php?id=1194 )

Bulk energy services include variable RE integration, seasonal storage, and energy arbitrage. ESSs can store excess energy and supply it when needed, thereby managing RE intermittency and integrating more RE into the grid. Also, ESSs can cater to the seasonal

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