The ministry of heavy industries is looking to expand policy support for battery recycling and advanced chemistry cells (ACC) as India’s storage requirement rises sharply and the power system moves from a generation-capacity challenge to a grid-flexibility challenge.
Addressing the 12th India Energy Storage Week 2026, Vijay Mittal, joint secretary, ministry of heavy industries, said there have been repeated requests for specific policies for niche battery technologies and the ministry sees a need to widen the existing ACC incentive framework.
“There have been repeated requests for creating specific policies for niche battery technologies, and going forward, we also see the need to expand the existing incentive system for advanced chemistry cells so that more operators and partners in the field can be covered,” Mittal said.
Domestic Supply Chains
He also said the ministry of heavy industries, along with the office of the principal scientific adviser to the Prime Minister, has tied up with the European Union to create pilot projects in battery recycling.
Mittal said India’s battery ecosystem has moved beyond electric vehicles into battery manufacturing, components, cell technologies, raw materials, recycling and financing. “Recycling has become a very significant subject, and financing has also become vital to the ecosystem,” he said.
He added that the ministry is evaluating proposals for an ALBM-type system, targeted policies for niche battery technologies and broader component ecosystem support. The ministry of mines has also introduced schemes to support refining of critical materials for battery production, he said.
Evolution From Energy Generation
The policy signal comes as India’s storage ecosystem expands rapidly. Shripad Yesso Naik, Minister of state for power and new & renewable energy, said India has commissioned around 7.5 GWh of storage capacity, while more than 140 GWh is under construction, awarded or under tendering.
“But if we are to build a truly flexible grid, deployment must accelerate further because the requirement is no longer measured only in gigawatts. It is measured in our ability to respond instantly to changing system conditions,” Naik said.
He said over 53% of India’s installed electricity capacity now comes from non-fossil fuel sources, while the country remains committed to achieving 500 GW of non-fossil capacity by 2030 and net zero by 2070. Schemes such as PM Surya Ghar, PM KUSUM and the National Green Hydrogen Mission are reshaping energy production and consumption, he said.
“For many years, India’s biggest concern was whether we could generate enough electricity. Today, the question has changed. Can we deliver the right electricity at the right time, at the right place? That is the challenge of grid flexibility,” Naik said.