Data recap: Travel slump, services growth, fuel spike

livemint.com:

Mint reported. Even though the overall score took a dip, Indian firms recorded one of the best sales performances last month despite inflation pressures, according to S&P Global. Listed on 21 August, Jio Financial Services has had its share of volatile performance at the bourses.

The stock is the third-most valued among non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), but its price-to-book value—a measure of how it is valued with respect to its assets—is well below its peers in the sector, an analysis by howindialives.com showed. The stock was dropped from various indices on the National Stock Exchange on Thursday days after a similar action by the BSE. ₹3.1 trillion: That is the potential value of investments proposed by contenders for pumped storage projects (PSPs) in the country, Mint reported.

NHPC, Tata Power, Adani Green Energy and JSW Energy are among the companies that have proposed to build these PSPs, with capacity totalling up to 39 GW. In PSPs, excess energy is used to pump water to an upper reservoir when power demand is low, and water is released to turn a turbine when demand rises. Some companies, including Tata Power, Adani Green Energy, and JSW Energy, have already signed memorandums of understanding with certain states to ramp up PSP capacity.

In a boost for the renewable energy sector, the government approved a ₹3,760-crore viability gap fund (VGF) for battery energy storage systems (BESS) on Wednesday. As part of the programme, the government will offer financial backing for up to 40% of the capital cost of BESS projects, amounting to 4,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) until 2030-31. The Union Cabinet said the VGF would be disbursed in five tranches linked with various stages of implementation of such projects.