India unveils country's largest battery energy storage system

India's largest battery energy storage system, which stores power using solar energy, has been successfully commissioned with an installed capacity of 152.325 megawatts hour (MWh).

Located in Rajnandgaon in the central state of Chhattisgarh, the 40 megawatts (MW) project of the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) with a solar photovoltaic plant uses battery storage in the generation and use of renewable energy.

The project utilises battery storage for storing solar energy when the sun is shining and using it later during hours of peak demand in the evening to meet the electricity demand. The project has deployed bifacial modules, which reflect the light from the ground, thus generating more electricity than monofacial modules, hence setting a new standard for large-scale renewable energy projects.

The energy would be purchased by the state of Chhattisgarh, thus contributing to meeting the peak energy demand using green electrons. The project was dedicated to the nation by Prime Minister Narendra Modi via video conferencing on February 24.

The project ensures overall power stability and reliability by ensuring an efficient evacuation of power through a 132 kilo-volt (kV) double-circuit double-string transmission line to Chhattisgarh State Power Transmission Company Limited's (CSPTCL) 220/132 kilovolt (kV) substation, facilitating seamless integration into the existing power grid. The project is estimated to save tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually, an official statement said without specifying any figure.

SECI's long-term power purchase agreement with the state electricity distribution company ensures the economic viability of the project built with funding from the World Bank and Clean Technology Fund under the Innovation in Solar Power and Hybrid Technologies Project as well as leveraged financing from domestic lending agencies.