RIL plans foray into pumped storage projects amid energy transition push

livemint.com:

NEW DELHI : Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) is looking to enter pumped storage projects (PSP) for hydro power as it focuses closely on clean energy, two people aware of the plans said. The company's subsidiary Reliance New Energy is scouting for sites for the projects, the people cited above said on condition of anonymity. PSPs use cheap green power during off-peak hours to lift water to a height and release it into a lower reservoir to turn turbines that generate electricity when the demand for electricity goes up.

"RIL is looking for PSP sites and would bid for these projects in a big way," one of the two people mentioned above said. RIL's planned entry into PSPs may elevate competition in the segment, which has seen keen interest from several renewable energy companies and business houses. In September 2023, Mint reported that NHPC, Tata Power, Adani Green Energy, Greenko and JSW Energy were among companies that have proposed to build PSPs totalling 39GW in the country, potentially attracting investments of as much as ₹3.12 trillion.

Queries emailed to RIL remained unanswered till press time. Reliance's PSP ambitions closely align with its existing plans for solar module manufacturing, green hydrogen production and battery energy storage. It is also constructing the Dhirubhai Ambani Green Energy Giga Complex over 5,000 acres in Jamnagar, Gujarat with five giga factories for photovoltaic panels, fuel cell systems, green hydrogen, energy storage and power electronics, which it expects to complete in the second half of this fiscal year.