The Central Transmission Utility of India (CTUIL) has proposed that a minimum of 3 acre/100 MWh will be considered the benchmark for establishing a battery energy storage system (BESS) project.

Land documents corresponding to a minimum of 1.5 acre/MWh, considering 50% of the land requirement, must be submitted along with applications for connectivity to the interstate transmission system (ISTS) network on the land route for BESS projects.

Currently, there is no minimum criterion for land for BESS capacity. However, a benchmark for the land requirement for BESS is required to process ISTS connectivity applications received on the land route under the standalone ESS category.

Per clause 4.1 of the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission’s “Connectivity and GNA” regulations, 2022, solar, wind, hybrid, and standalone BESS are eligible to connect to the ISTS network under the land route.

In August 2023, the Central Electricity Authority, CTUIL, and industry stakeholders decided that the land requirement for solar and wind developers would be 3 acre/MW and 0.25 acre/MW, respectively.

To finalize the land requirement for standalone BESS projects, information on the land requirement was sought by CTUIL from BESS developers who had applied on the National Single Window System portal under the category “Renewable energy generating stations (REGS) with ESS.”

The land requirement will vary based on factors such as layout (land for battery container, power conversion system, and transformer), current technology, capacity, safety regulations, infrastructure needs, and future expansion. Based on these factors, CTUIL arrived at the average 3 acre/100 MWh figure.

CTUIL has invited feedback from stakeholders on the proposed land requirement for BESS projects.

It has also sought suggestions and comments on the timelines for the financial closure of REGS, other than hydroelectric and pumped hydro storage projects, for the in-principle grant of ISTS connectivity. It has been proposed that the financial closure of these projects should be achieved six months before the projects’ scheduled date of commercial operation or start of connectivity under the General Network Access Regulations.

With the growing share of variable solar and wind power in the energy mix, BESS projects are seen as bridging the gap between generation and consumption while maintaining grid balance.

The government enhanced BESS’s viability gap funding (VGF) program from 4,000 MWh of storage capacity to 13,200 MWh by 2028. The VGF is capped at ₹2.7 million (~$32,114)/MWh or 30% of the capital cost, whichever is lower.