India’s stored potential

India has taken big steps in building out a domestic PV supply chain. Do you see this happening in the energy storage sector as well?

JT: India’s domestic industry has made very impressive investments in manufacturing facilities, technology transfer and business partnerships. The government has encouraged solar investments through the production linked incentive and basic customs duty, and a lot of financial incentives were extended by banks and private equity to increase the number of manufacturing facilities in India.

Based on the approved list of models and manufacturers, which companies need to be on to supply projects linked to government tenders, there are now more than 90 companies manufacturing PV modules in India.

In the battery space, similar moves are taking shape. The same PLI has been activated into the battery storage segment, also with a focus of creating opportunities to build local projects. India is moving toward the same strategy followed in solar, to create a domestic ecosystem for battery systems.

And are battery manufacturing plans going all the way up the supply chain, to cells and even raw material components?

The EV Battery itself is a very new segment for India. The goal is to establish a robust domestic supply chain for Mobility solution & Energy storage Solution to reduce import dependency.

Right now, India is importing heavily from South Korea, China, Japan, and Taiwan but if you look at the latest budget, the Government of India is proposing a critical mineral mission. It’s an initiative aimed at securing the supply of essential minerals that are vital for technological advancement and transition to a green economy.

This mission involves identifying materials which are related to renewable energy, electric mobility and other hi-tech industries. India has already activated this critical mineral mission and is on a lookout for partnerships in India and abroad. Efforts are being made to boost domestic production of minerals like lithium, cobalt, and rare earth elements. The Ministry of Mines & The Geological Survey of India is working on a few initiatives related to lithium to see what is available in India and other nearby countries, and also looking at partnerships with Australia, Chile, and other mineral rich countries to secure supplies.

It will take time, but there is also the chance to create domestic availability of some of these chemicals. In Jammu and Kashmir, around 5.9 million tonnes of lithium have been identified by the Geological Survey of India.

On the demand side, how do you see uptake of batteries developing in India?

Adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) is the next key stage for India’s energy transition. It’s a necessity to make this change, because in certain cities air pollution has become a major health hazard, and people are suffering.

India also remains one of the world’s largest importers of crude oil, and we need to reduce that dependency and the related burden on national finance. We have sufficient sun and wind, and we must take full advantage of that.

Thankfully, we see the transition to EVs happening very quickly. Certain states and cities are moving forward with converting entire public transport systems to run on Electric Vehicles. India has over 2.8 million EVs on its roads and is expected to grow in big numbers.

Demand for batteries, particularly advanced battery technologies, is expected to grow significantly. On the EV side, the weight and cost of batteries is still a limiting factor, but we see this being rapidly addressed by researchers and the industry.

Stationary storage also has an important role, as India looks to integrate more renewables, how do you see this market developing?

India’s commitment to increasing Renewable Energy’s share requires the adoption of energy storage to handle variability in generation. Recently, India has turned strongly towards rooftop based, distributed solar. And in commercial projects, energy storage is increasingly supplied with this to create a complete energy solution. This demand comes from multiple industries, many of which themselves are growing rapidly. Whether its consumer electronics, Pharma, Cold Storage, construction, mining, and other heavy industries. All of these are turning to distributed solar and energy storage to power their operations.

There is also a lot of large scale solar and wind in India, do you see storage getting into this space, as well as distributed PV?

It is certainly part of India’s plans. At utility scale, around 160 GW of energy storage is in various planning stages, and this will be critical to maintaining grid stability across the country.

Batteries are increasingly used for grid stability and to manage the peak load demand. The government has understood the need for battery technology and is trying to incorporate storage along with renewable energy in many new projects. Energy storage greatly benefits the grid, and it is well on the way to becoming a mainstream technology.

Is this why you’ve again chosen to position the battery show alongside REI? How big do you expect this year’s event to be?

We are hosting one show focused on renewable energy( Renewable Energy India Expo), and another focused on e-mobility (The Battery Show India), with energy storage addressed across both. It’s two birds with one stone, and visitors will see how each sector complements the other.

For example, India’s Prime Minister recently announced a plan (PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana ) for residential rooftop PV supplied to 10 million users, and today the industry is not only focusing on power generation. Energy storage is part of the power generation package delivered to the customer. India has so many small towns, villages, and rural regions that have struggled with reliable electricity supply. Residential solar plus energy storage can play a major role in the solution for these regions, and a huge opportunity for the battery industry to grow in India.

India has also announced big plans for green hydrogen production, how does this fit into the renewables and energy storage space?

India’s green hydrogen ambition is really gaining momentum, all the largest corporates in the country are getting involved. Storage of hydrogen is a key element, and I’m hoping some of our exhibitors will have solutions for this on show. Along with energy storage, this is a key element for India’s energy transition, and I’m hoping to see the two industries become even more intertwined at The Battery Show India.

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