Solar power developers in India have started to add battery storage to photovoltaic projects to attract buyers and reduce the large share of curtailments for power supply that the grids are unable to absorb. Santosh Sarangi, Secretary of India’s Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, said that as much as 42 gigawatts (GW) of solar projects are still struggling to find offtakers.
Moreover, about 18 GW of solar-only projects without batteries are most at risk of continuing to struggle. Additionally, another up to 15 GW in total projects awarded at high prices also risk failing to secure buyers.
Without battery backup, solar projects see curtailments during the hottest months and peak daytime hours. India's electricity grid is expanding at a slower pace than the boom in renewable energy installations, leading to an increased share of clean energy curtailments.
Grid and transmission constraints accounted for nearly two-thirds of all renewable energy curtailment at 300 gigawatt-hours (GWh) in the first quarter of the year, clean energy think tank Ember said in a report in May.
