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The Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) has issued a tender to set up 2,000 MW of solar power with co-located energy storage systems (ESS), marking a big step in boosting India's renewable power reliability. Developers will be chosen via tariff-based bidding, and must link projects to the Inter-State Transmission System. Each 1 MW solar unit needs at least 0.5 MW/2 MWh of ESS, charged solely by solar. Projects may span multiple sites but must include co-located storage. This aligns with India's growing push for hybrid energy systems to meet round-the-clock power demand, aiming for 73.93 GW of storage by 2032.
The Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), functioning under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), has floated a tender to establish 2,000 MW of solar power capacity paired with co-located energy storage systems (ESS). The announcement, made earlier this week, reflects India's growing emphasis on integrating renewable generation with storage to address variability and enhance grid stability. Advertisement
This development follows an advisory issued by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) earlier this year, which recommended co-locating energy storage units with solar projects to improve both cost efficiency and operational reliability of the power grid. The move is in line with India's long-term strategy to ensure uninterrupted power supply, even during non-generation hours.
According to the bid document published on SECI's official platform, developers will be selected through a tariff-based competitive bidding process, designated as SECI-ISTS-XX. The projects are required to connect to the Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS), and bidders are permitted to choose project sites based on their own discretion, assuming full responsibility for cost, risk, and execution.
The proposed project configuration mandates a minimum energy storage capacity of 1,000 MW/4,000 MWh across the awarded capacity. Each 1 MW of solar project capacity must be supported by at least 0.5 MW/2 MWh of ESS. Furthermore, SECI has made it clear that only storage systems charged using solar power will be eligible under this scheme-storage powered from other energy sources will not qualify.
The tender allows for flexibility in implementation, enabling a single project to span multiple locations. In such cases, it is compulsory for the ESS to be co-located with at least one of the project components to ensure operational integration.
The deadline for online bid submissions is in the coming weeks, followed closely by offline submission and bid opening. The process is expected to generate strong interest among developers, given the rising demand for hybrid renewable-plus-storage solutions in the Indian energy market.
SECI, which serves as the nodal agency for renewable energy auctions in the country, has increasingly focused on energy storage to complement India's rapid expansion of solar and wind capacity. The push for integrated systems reflects a shift towards building firm, dispatchable renewable energy sources that can match conventional power generation in performance and reliability.
In line with projections from the National Electricity Plan prepared by the CEA, India is estimated to require 73.93 GW/411.4 GWh of storage capacity by the financial year 2031-32 to support an anticipated 364 GW of solar and 121 GW of wind installations. Of this, 47.24 GW/236.22 GWh is expected to be met through battery energy storage systems (BESS), while 26.69 GW/175.18 GWh would be supplied via pumped storage projects (PSPs).
Source - PTI
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