Indian state awards 1.5 GWh BESS tender at $0.068 / kWh

Uttar Pradesh Power Corp. Ltd (UPPCL) has allocated 1,500 MWh (375 MW × 4 hours) of standalone battery energy storage system (BESS) capacity at a tariff of INR 6.45-6.46/kWh (USD 0.068/kWh).

The projects will supply stored power on an on-demand basis under 15-year contracts, with developers responsible for arranging charging power. Each BESS must support one operational cycle per day, equivalent to a full charge-discharge cycle. Project can be located anywhere in the state of Uttar Pradesh. Land identification for the projects is under the scope of BESS developer.

Of the eleven participants in the e-reverse auction, KCC Buildcon (187.5 MW) and Agastya Energy Industries (62.5 MW) emerged winners by quoting the lowest price of INR 6.45/kWh with the balance capacity secured by MKC Infrastructure at INR 6.46/kWh.

Selected developers will sign a Battery Energy Discharge Purchase Agreement (BEDPA) with UPPCL for supplying stored energy.

Under the tender conditions, developers will be responsible for setting up the BESS and sourcing charging power independently, primarily from renewable energy sources. Discharging of the BESS system is under the scope of the UPPCL. The projects are eligible for central financial assistance in the form of viability gap funding (VGF) under the Power System Development Fund (PSDF).

From pv magazine India.