Regulatory Reforms
On January 9, 2025, USAID’s South Asia Regional Energy Program (SAREP) hosted a Stakeholder Consultation on “Developing the Market for Scaling Pumped Storage Plants (PSP) in India” at the India International Centre, New Delhi. The event brought together key stakeholders from the energy sector, including policymakers, regulators, developers, financiers, and technology providers. The consultation aimed to explore the significance of PSP in India’s energy transition, highlight global best practices, and address obstacles to scaling PSP in India to meet the country’s long-duration energy storage needs.
The session began with an overview of PSP technology, followed by a presentation on international case studies and PSP’s potential for India’s energy future. Attendees then participated in a roundtable discussion that focused on critical challenges such as aligning regulatory frameworks, streamlining approval processes, and ensuring equitable incentives for both public and private sector participants. The conversation also examined innovative financing and contracting models necessary to drive large-scale PSP deployment in India.
Ms. Monali Zeya Hazra, Senior Regional Energy Specialist at USAID/India, opened the event by emphasizing the viability of PSP in South Asia. She stressed the importance of leveraging international case studies to guide India in scaling PSP technologies and noted that SAREP is actively collaborating with different stakeholders to support PSP deployment in India, reinforcing the program’s commitment to facilitating energy transition through storage solutions.
Professor Arun Kumar from IIT Roorkee provided in-depth insights into PSP’s potential in India, detailing the technology’s benefits and presenting global success stories. He also discussed specific challenges India faces, such as regulatory hurdles and infrastructure gaps, which must be overcome to scale PSP effectively.
Assistant Professor Himanshu Jain from IIT Roorkee concluded the discussions with a summary of key points, emphasizing the need for a collaborative approach to address the challenges. He highlighted the importance of aligning institutional, regulatory, and policy frameworks to foster an environment conducive to PSP development.
The stakeholder consultation ended on a positive note, with participants committing to collaborate on overcoming barriers and accelerating PSP development in India. The event was a crucial step in fostering dialogue among stakeholders and setting the stage for PSP to become a cornerstone of India’s energy storage strategy. The discussions underscored the need for a unified approach to deploy PSP effectively and contribute to India’s decarbonization and sustainable energy goals.
