Uttar Pradesh greenlights 22 GWh of pumped hydro storage in April

This includes 2.75 gigawatts of cumulative capacity.

The state of Uttar Pradesh has inked power purchase agreements (PPA) for 2.75 gigawatts (GW) /22 gigawatt-hours of pumped hydro storage projects, according to JMK Research & Analytics.

Based on the agreements, the developers are required to commission this capacity within six years by 2030.

Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL), the off-taker in the PPAs, also issued a separate tender to procure 2 GW of storage capacity. Once these capacities are commissioned, UP will harness 35.4% of its 13.4 GW potential.

Aside from Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra also signed deals with the state power generation corporation, Mahagenco, and Avaada for a cumulative pumped hydro storage capacity of 8.9 GW across nine sites. Of this capacity, 3.6 GW will be set up by the Avaada Group, requiring a cumulative investment of Rs 15,000 crore.

The Central Electricity Authority has projected a need for 27 GW/175 GWh of long-duration pumped hydro storage capacity in India by 2031 to 2032.