PM Modi Lays Foundation For Bihar's 500 MWh BESS Project

Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi today inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for multiple development projects worth over ₹5,900 crore at Siwan in Bihar through video conferencing. At the inauguration, he laid the foundation stone for a 500 MWh Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) capacity in Bihar.

The standalone BESSs are being installed at 15 grid substations of the state, including Muzaffarpur, Motihari, Bettiah, Siwan among others. The capacity of the battery to be installed in each sub-station is between 20 to 80 MWh. It will save the distribution companies from buying electricity at expensive rates by feeding the already stored electricity back to the grid, directly benefiting the consumers and the discom.

BESS Project Surge In Bihar

In the last week, numerous companies have secured BESS projects in Bihar. For instance, Maharashtra-based Prostram secured Letter of Intent (LoI) from Bihar State Power Generation Company Limited (BSPGCL) for a 30 MW/120 MWh standalone Battery Energy Storage System (BESS).  Prostram, would get a rental of ₹4.44 lakh per MW/month, amounting to an annual rental of ₹15.98 crore for the 30 MW/120 MWh capacity. The storage units will be located across multiple grid substation sites operated by Bihar State Power Transmission Company Limited (BSPTCL).

Additionally, Hindustan Power also secured a Letter of Intent (LoI) from Bihar State Power Generation Company Limited (BSPGCL) for developing a 120 MWh Standalone Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) across three critical grid substations in Bihar. The company secured the project under a BOOT (Build, Own, Operate, Transfer) basis. The project would be located at three locations in Bihar, namely, Bhagalpur (40 MWh), Udakishanganj (40 MWh), and Sitamarhi (40 MWh).