India grows fast in generating solar and wind power, which in turn increases the need for energy storage. It balances renewable energy generation with electricity demand. During the daytime, excess solar power is stored, which is supplied at evening peak hours, while pumped hydro can support longer-duration needs. With storage costs falling, government funding increasing and the project pipeline expanding, India is building the infrastructure needed to integrate more renewable energy into the grid.
SNAPSHOT
Project - Renewable Energy sector
Insights by - Amit Kumar Mittal, CEO of Jindal India Renewable Energy
Location - India
Efforts to Scale up Renewable Energy - Government funding & Domestic battery manufacturing
Scope - An important link between India’s expanding renewable energy generation and increasing electricity demand
The renewable energy sector in India is moving into a new phase. The country has added large amounts of solar and wind capacity. The actual challenge is making sure that this electricity is available when demand is highest. This is where energy storage is becoming increasingly important.
The power demand in India is not associated with renewable energy generation. Solar power plants deliver increased output during the day, while the electricity utility is at its peak in the evening. Wind generation changes with weather conditions that create a gap between renewable electricity production and grid requirements.
In April 2026, when the situation had steadied, India’s electricity demand reached a record 256 GW during a heatwave. Solar compensates a significant share of afternoon demand, but its output declined later in the day as cooling requirements remained high. Energy storage is the ideal solution to this mismatch. Surplus electricity is stored and supplied when renewable generation falls.
BESS manages shorter periods of imbalance. In turn, pumped hydro storage can support longer-duration requirements, including periods when renewable generation remains weak.
India has significant potential for pumped hydro, although much of this potential is yet to be developed.
The economics of storage are also changing. There is a steep fall in battery storage auction tariffs during the 2022-2024 period even as global battery prices have reduced substantially over the longer term. Lower costs are making it easier to consider renewable power and storage as a combined solution rather than treating them as separate technologies.
The government plays a vital role in supporting this expansion of energy storage. The Viability Gap Funding scheme enhances battery storage projects by adding funds announced in 2026, aiming to expand capacity.
A production-linked incentive program is also supporting domestic battery cell manufacturing.
Several projects are already demonstrating how storage can work alongside renewable generation. India’s storage pipeline has grown considerably, although the gap between planned capacity and actual installed capacity remains large.
The coming years will therefore be important for India’s clean-energy transition. Building storage at scale will require investment, stronger transmission networks, and timely project execution. If these areas progress together, energy storage can help India use more of the renewable electricity it produces and reduce the amount of clean power lost because the grid cannot absorb it at the right time.