Two most prominent renewable energy sources - solar and wind power - are both intermittent and worse, (no sunlight at night and volatility of wind flow). India must be able to store electricity to eliminate or minimize the intermittency challenge. Battery storage is by far the most prominent of all electricity storage systems today.
Growth will be primarily driven by battery use in renewable energy power plants and electric mobility. In India, the battery storage market is poised to grow from USD 2.9 billion in 2020 to USD 30.05 billion by 2030.
Some of the main battery technologies used for power and mobility sectors - lead acid and lithium-ion being the two most prominent - are very well established. Few others are close to commercialization, while some promising battery technologies, such as solid-state batteries, are still in the research stage.
In India, lithium-ion batteries are seeing increased adoption, particularly in the EV sector. The government’s Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles (FAME) scheme aims to support the deployment of 1 million electric two-wheelers and 500,000 electric four-wheelers by 2025.
By “firming” low carbon power sources and enabling electric mobility, which could also be powered by renewable power, batteries present a powerful support for decarbonizing India. Expanding renewable energy capacity and battery storage could significantly reduce the country's CO2 emissions. For instance, integrating 100 GWh of battery storage with renewable energy could mitigate up to 50 million tons of CO2 emissions annually.
Key challenges for batteries include the high cost of Li-ion batteries, though it is coming down fast, and challenges with battery disposal post end of life, though emerging Li-ion recycling technologies could address this challenge. In India, the cost of Li-ion batteries has dropped by 85% over the past decade.
High-impact innovations can be expected around grid-scale batteries, cost decreases in Li-ion batteries, fast charging Li-ion batteries, redox flow batteries, innovations in battery management systems, battery testing and standardization, and battery recycling. The Indian government’s National Mission on Transformative Mobility and Battery Storage aims to create a battery manufacturing capacity of 50 GWh by 2030, which will be crucial for supporting these innovations.
The Indian battery energy storage market is poised for substantial growth over the next decade. By 2030, the market is expected to expand from a modest 2 GWh in 2020 to approximately 140 GWh, reflecting a 70-fold increase. The integration of battery storage in renewable energy power plants and the burgeoning electric mobility sector will drive this remarkable growth.
Battery installed capacity in India could grow from about 2 GWh in 2020 to over 50 GWh by 2030, a 25-fold increase. Batteries will enable seamless integration of intermittent renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind, into the grid, ensuring a stable and reliable power supply.
India aims to achieve 450 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030. This includes substantial contributions from solar and wind power. However, to fully capitalize on these renewable sources, effective energy storage solutions are essential. Battery storage will play a pivotal role in stabilizing the grid, reducing reliance on fossil fuels, and enhancing the efficiency of renewable energy utilization.
|
|