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NEED FOR ACTION Broadcasting Minister Mr. Anurag viable – in the form of grants for three
Thakur said after the cabinet meeting. years.
Call for closer battery supply chain co-operation
The scheme is intended to boost bat- The viability gap funds will be
between India and US tery storage projects critical to India’s released in fi ve tranches till 2030-31
ambitious plan to expand its renewable and a minimum of 85% of the BESS
There is a crucial need for India and and nearly 90 percent for REE. Chinese although cell manufacturing and giga energy capacity to 500 gigawatts (GW) project capacity will be made availa-
the US to collaborate closely on the companies have also made substantial factories will happen in the US, it is not by 2030 and cut the cost of battery ble to power distribution companies.
battery supply chain, particularly for investment in overseas assets in Aus- easy to set up a complete supply chain. energy storage from the current Rs. 5.5- Project developers would be selected
demand-intensive critical minerals such tralia, Chile, Congo and Indonesia. So, the US as part of IRA has specifi ed 6.5 per unit, which will help in making through a competitive bidding pro-
as cobalt, graphite, lithium, manganese, that beyond 2025-26, they want to com- stored renewable energy a viable option cess. A number of Indian conglome-
and nickel, according to industry body “Post-COVID generally there is pletely eliminate dependence on China. for managing peak power demand. rates including Reliance Industries,
India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA). awareness that China has, depending So, if you are getting government Adani Power and JSW Energy have
on what you are looking at in the incentives, then the supply chain has to Battery storage, used to back up in- plans to set up large-scale battery
“There is a need to build an alter- supply chain, somewhere between 80-95 be from friendly countries. That elimi- termittent renewable power supply to plants. India has 37-MWh of battery
native battery supply chain, which is free percent market captured on complete nates China and Russia. Although it stabilise the grid, is an evolving tech- storage capacity currently. Accord-
of Chinese infl uences,” IESA’s Founder & supply chain of advanced cell manufac- is not specifi ed in as many words,” nology, and there are very few large- bidding. The government will provide ing to estimates from its power sector
Executive Director Mr. Rahul Wala- turing,” Mr. Walawalkar pointed out. Mr. Walawalkar explained. scale operational projects in the world. so-called Viability Gap Funding – in- planning body, it requires 236 giga-
walkar, was quoted as saying in a Hindu The scheme intends to develop large- centives to cover risks of developers of watt hours (GWh) of battery energy
BusinessLine report. Now, the US and Europe are trying India can logically become a part of scale battery energy storage systems to critical infrastructure projects that are storage in addition to 27-GW pump
to develop domestic manufacturing of the supply chain, he said. “Right now, bring down costs through competitive or may turn out to be economically un- storage projects by 2031-32.
International Energy Agency (IEA) batteries, similar to what India is doing technically Indian companies cannot
in a 2021 report said that with regard to and they are putting a lot more money tap the US market for supply chain. GREEN ENERGY
lithium, cobalt and rare earth elements on the table only for the domestic mar- The Prime Minister on his recent US IOC’s ethanol plant at Panipat to reach 100% capacity
(REEs), the world’s top three producing ket, he added. “Infl ation Reduction Act visit signed the Minerals Security Part-
nations control well over three-quarters (IRA) has changed the game. Before nership (MSP) and that is the fi rst step. utilisation soon
of global output. In some cases, a single this, the EU was ahead of the US, and It is a welcome step, but that is not
country is responsible for around half it was expected that Europe would be suffi cient,” he pointed out. Indian Oil Corporation’s (IOC’s) Reduction Scheme of International
of the worldwide production. the major hub for advanced battery Rs. 900-crore 2G (second generation) Aviation (CORSIA) of the International
manufacturing outside China. But now IESA is working on strengthening ethanol plant, which was inaugura- Civil Aviation Organisation has said
For instance, Congo and China were the US has overtaken others because a the India-US agreements. Last year, ted by Prime Minister Modi in August that airlines will fl y with 2 percent SAF
responsible for around 70 percent and lot of investments planned for Europe the US-India Joint Energy Storage 2022, is set to reach 100 percent capa- blends. IOC will be supplying fuels
60 percent of global production of cobalt have shifted there as they are offering Task-force was set up. And IESA has city utilisation in a few months from that comply with that decision, said
and rare earth elements, respectively, a lot more money. For instance, India been offi cially asked to become the 30 percent now, said IOC’s Chairman Mr. Vaidya.
in 2019. The level of concentration is offering Rs. 2,000 (around $15) per secretariat for that, Mr. Walawalkar and Managing Director, Mr. Shrikant
is even higher for processing opera- kilowatt hour for battery, while the US noted. “One of the bilateral things we Madhav Vaidya. On green hydrogen, he said the joint
tions, where China has a strong pre- is offering $35,” he said. are looking at is also to ensure that venture with L&T and the renewable
sence across the board. China’s share of India gets involved with the supply In an interaction with the journalists energy company, ReNew Energy, had
refi ning is around 35 percent for nickel, Evolving scenario chain for IRA manufacturing in the of The Hindu Group of publications, ethanol by 2025. Mr. Vaidya said that in been formed and “we will be bidding
50-70 percent for lithium and cobalt, “Now what is happening is that US,” he said. Mr. Vaidya said the feedstock for the October, IOC’s blend was 12.5 percent, for projects”. In August, IOC invited

AIDING GROWTH bioethanol plant – rice husk (parali) – is which will be raised to 15 percent next bids for setting up a 10,000 tonnes-per-
available for collection only for about year, and then, gradually, to 20 percent annum of green hydrogen capacity
Cabinet approves viability fund for battery storage 45 days, and will need to be stored for by 2025. to be set up near its Panipat refi nery.
the entire year. The plant will need Mr. Vaidya said that the IOC-L&T-ReNew
systems 150,000 tonnes of feedstock every year. Also, part of the 2G ethanol will joint venture would participate in the
The collection of the feedstock has be supplied to the go SAF (sustainable bid. The jv would have to bid and win
The Union Cabinet has approved a of the project. The government has set 2030-31. “India has planned to have begun now, and the plant, therefore, aviation fuels) facility, which is also the project; it would not be handed the
viability gap funding scheme (VGF) to aside Rs. 3,760-crore from this year’s 50% of its total energy share from will reach full capacity shortly, he said. coming up near the Panipat refi nery, project just because IOC is a partner in
encourage companies to set up battery budget for the scheme aimed at creat- non-fossil fuels by 2030. So, to make under a joint venture with Lanzajet, a the jv, he said. Mr. Vaidya said that IOC
energy storage systems in the country, ing 4,000-megawatt hours (MWh) bat- renewable energy more viable, we need Refi ners like IOC are required to subsidiary of Lanzatech in which IOC would set up 500,000 tonnes-a-year of
offering up to 40% of the capital cost tery energy storage systems (BESS) by to strengthen the BESS,” Information & supply petrol that has 20 percent (bio) has a stake. The Carbon Offsetting and green hydrogen capacity by 2040.

148 Chemical Weekly September 19, 2023 Chemical Weekly September 19, 2023 149

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