India energy storage market surges in 2025 with BESS tender boom

Cumulatively from 2018 to 2025, India has seen 155 ESS tenders totalling 224 GWh.

India’s energy storage market accelerated sharply in 2025, led by a surge in battery energy storage system (BESS) tenders and stronger policy support, according to the India Energy Storage Market Report 2025.

The report said ESS tendering reached 102 GWh in 2025, about 1.4 times 2024 levels. BESS tenders alone rose to 60 GWh, up from 4 GWh in 2023 and 24 GWh in 2024, driven by falling global battery costs and the viability gap funding (VGF) scheme. Around 50 new developers entered the BESS market during the year.

Of the 69 tenders (102 GWh) announced in 2025, only 28.6 GWh had been awarded and 5.7 GWh was under execution by year-end.

Cumulatively from 2018 to 2025, India has seen 155 ESS tenders totalling 224 GWh, with 42% of capacity under execution and 21% cancelled. Operational BESS capacity stood at 0.7 GWh in 2025, with about 2 GWh expected by end-2026.

Policy momentum remained strong. Key developments cited include support for 30 GWh of standalone BESS under the second VGF tranche (INR 5,400 crore), extension of ISTS waivers to 2028, a CEA advisory to include minimum storage in future solar tenders, and the Electricity Amendment Rules 2025, which formally define ESS as an asset class.

On pricing, the report described 2025 as the “year of standalone BESS”, with tariffs for standalone projects discovered across a wide range depending on duration and cycling, whilst solar-plus-BESS and FDRE tenders remained more limited.

Looking ahead, the report projects India’s total ESS capacity to rise to 336 GWh by 2029–30 and over 400 GWh by 2031–32, with the sector expected to grow fivefold between 2026 and 2032, supported by an estimated INR 479 thousand crore of investment.