India Commissions First Regulated Utility-Scale Battery Storage Project

India’s first commercial regulated utility-scale battery energy storage system (BESS) is now online. The 20MW/40MWh standalone system, developed by IndiGrid, was commissioned in Delhi on April 4.

The project, Kilokari BESS Private Limited (KBPL), was awarded through a tender by BSES Rajdhani Power Limited (BRPL), a joint venture between Reliance Industries and the Delhi government. Approved by the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) in 2023, it is the first of its kind in India.

BRPL will use the BESS for ancillary services, grid stabilization, and peak demand management. It will pay a fixed tariff based on availability.

70% of the capital cost was financed by a concessional loan from the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP), in partnership with co-owner Ampere-hour Energy (AHE).

The project’s annual tariff of ₹5.76 million/MW (around US$69,000/MW) is 55% lower than earlier benchmarks, setting a new affordability standard.

This is also the first project under GEAPP’s BESS Consortium, which was launched at COP28 to deploy 5GW of energy storage in low- and middle-income countries, including 1GW in India by 2027.

IndiGrid, backed by KKR and Sterlite Power, sees this project as a replicable model and a key step in supporting India’s energy transition.