Building India's flexible power future: Storage as an “and” strategy

One of the most compelling ideas from Dr. Sinha's BNEF Summit intervention is his view of storage as something more than an energy asset.

This is particularly evident at the edge of the grid, where electricity networks meet consumers and where changing load patterns and distributed generation can create localized challenges.

The role of storage does not end with renewable generation.

Dr. Sinha's perspective spans the electricity value chain, from renewable projects and distribution networks to transmission and conventional generation.

At the generation level, storage can help renewable projects provide power with greater flexibility. At the distribution level, it can respond to local peaks and changing load patterns. At the transmission level, it can provide another source of flexibility as power flows become more dynamic.

There is also an opportunity to use storage alongside conventional generation. As some thermal plants operate at lower utilization or closer to their minimum technical levels, storage could provide an additional tool for responding to changes in demand.

This is important because it reframes the energy transition. New technologies do not necessarily have to operate in isolation from the existing power system. Storage can help connect different parts of that system and make them work more flexibly together.

A more renewable and distributed power system will also require a more intelligent one.

Solar and wind generation can change with weather conditions. Rooftop solar is creating more two-way flows of electricity. Batteries can move between charging and discharging depending on system requirements. Demand itself is becoming more dynamic.

Managing this system requires more than physical infrastructure. It requires visibility, forecasting and the ability to make decisions in real time.

This is where data and digital technologies become increasingly important.

For storage, intelligent dispatch can determine when a battery should charge, discharge or preserve its capacity. For utilities, advanced forecasting can help anticipate renewable generation and electricity demand. Across the grid, digital systems can provide greater visibility into network conditions and help coordinate distributed resources.

Tata Power is already building capabilities in this direction. Its digital initiatives include AI and machine learning-based renewable and demand forecasting, real-time battery monitoring and an Advanced Power Planner that brings together renewable generation, pumped storage, battery storage and market intelligence. The company has also deployed more than 50 lakh smart meters, creating greater visibility into electricity consumption across its distribution operations.

These capabilities point toward a broader evolution in the power sector.

The grid of the future will need to know not only where electricity is being generated, but where it is needed, when it is needed and which resource can respond most effectively.

As storage takes on a greater role in balancing the power system, another question becomes important: how should the value of flexibility be recognized?

Storage can provide services beyond simply supplying electricity. It can respond during peaks, balance fluctuations and support grid stability. As these capabilities become increasingly valuable, market mechanisms will need to evolve alongside the technology.

The discussion at the BNEF Summit touched on this emerging opportunity, including the role storage could play in developing deeper ancillary-service markets.

For Dr. Sinha, however, the larger point is about what storage can make possible for the power system. A mature flexibility ecosystem would allow different resources to contribute according to the needs of the system, creating greater choice in how India manages its electricity supply.

That flexibility will become increasingly important as renewable energy expands. The objective is not simply to add storage capacity, but to create a power system in which flexibility can be deployed where it creates the greatest value.

The conversation around India's energy transition is often framed in terms of how quickly renewable capacity can grow. But the next phase will be defined by how effectively the power system can integrate and use that clean energy.

Dr. Praveer Sinha outlined a perspective grounded in that larger opportunity. His approach does not place one technology against another. It brings them together: batteries and pumped storage, centralized and distributed resources, generation and storage, physical infrastructure and digital intelligence.

At its core is a belief in what India's power system can become.

A system where renewable energy can be integrated at greater scale. Where storage can provide flexibility wherever it is needed. Where data enables faster and smarter decisions. And where the grid can respond to changing demand with greater resilience.

For India, that is the opportunity ahead. The goal is not simply to generate more renewable electricity, but to build the capability to make clean power increasingly reliable, responsive and available when the country needs it.

The next chapter of India's energy transition will not be defined only by how much power India can generate, but by how intelligently it can make that power work for its people and its growth.