The Centre has invited global bids to establish 10 GWh of giga-scale advanced chemistry cell battery manufacturing capacity for grid-scale stationary storage under its Production Linked Incentive scheme. According to reports from Business Standard and Mint, the Ministry of Heavy Industries on Wednesday announced the global tender for selection of beneficiaries to set up giga-scale ACC manufacturing facilities in India under the PLI Scheme. This move marks a major push to bolster India's domestic battery manufacturing ecosystem, accelerate the clean energy transition and strengthen the country's rapidly expanding renewable energy infrastructure.
The bidding process will be conducted online through a two-stage quality and cost-based-selection mechanism on the Central Public Procurement Portal. As reported by Mint, the tender will close on October 13, 2026, with bids being opened on October 14, 2026. A pre-bid conference is scheduled for July 29, 2026, and companies must submit an earnest money deposit of ₹10 crore according to publicly available tender details. This represents a streamlined process that allows manufacturers to quickly assess their eligibility and prepare comprehensive bids for the strategic capacity allocation.
The 10 GWh capacity has been earmarked specifically for grid-scale stationary storage systems, which are expected to play a key role in integrating renewable energy into the power grid and ensuring reliable electricity supply. According to Mint, this allocation represents one-fifth of the total 50 GWh capacity that the scheme aims to create, with the remaining 40 GWh already awarded to domestic manufacturers. The initiative is also aimed at reducing India's reliance on imported battery cells while encouraging global and domestic manufacturers to expand production within the country. An official statement emphasized that the 10 GWh capacity earmarked for Grid Scale Stationary Storage application will support the country's growing energy storage requirements arising from rapid renewable energy deployment, strengthening energy security, reducing import dependence, and developing a globally competitive battery manufacturing ecosystem.
The latest tender is part of the broader National Programme on Advanced Chemistry Cell Battery Storage, approved by the Union Cabinet in May 2021 with a budgetary outlay of ₹18,100 crore. As reported by Business Standard, a January 2026 report by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis and JMK Research found that only 1.4 GWh of the PLI scheme's 50 GWh target had been commissioned by October 2025, with the commissioned capacity coming entirely from Ola Electric. No incentives had been disbursed by then because domestic value-addition requirements had not been met, according to the report. Delays in installing equipment, shortages of technical expertise and difficulties in meeting localisation targets have also slowed progress. The tender floated on July 15 covers the final 10 GWh of the programme, with compared with the 2021 tender, it eases entry requirements, shifts the focus from energy density to battery efficiency and offers lower subsidies per kilowatt-hour.
The 10 GWh grid-scale energy storage tender has been described as 'much-awaited' by the industry, according to Debmalya Sen, president of the India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA). As reported by Mint, Sen estimated that including commercial and industrial projects, a total of 55 GWh worth of projects are under execution, with another 70 GWh capacity in the tendering stage for battery energy storage services alone. Experts note that grid-scale energy storage is critical for storing surplus electricity and supplying it when demand rises, addressing India's current challenge of curtailing solar generation during peak daylight hours due to inadequate storage capacity. India aims to achieve 500 GW of non-fossil capacity by 2030, making these storage facilities essential for the country's energy transition and renewable integration goals. However, industry executives caution that while domestic battery manufacturing can reduce costs over time, consumers are unlikely to see cheaper EVs unless India builds the rest of the battery ecosystem, from critical minerals and battery materials to recycling, testing and large-scale component manufacturing.
