Five battery energy storage systems (BESS) proposed by the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) are expected to be completed by October 2026, according to an update provided by the power utility to the State Electricity Regulatory Commission.

Two of the storage systems are coming up in Kasaragod district -- the first one at Mylatti with a proposed capacity of 125 megawatts (MW)/500 megawatt hours (MWh) and a second 15MW/60MWh project at Mulleria. The other three are a 40 MW/160 MWh BESS at Sreekantapuram, a 30 MW/120 MWh project at Areecode, and a 40 MW/160 MWh BESS in Pothencode.

Responding to a clarification sought by the Commission, the KSEB has given October 2026 as the Commercial Operation Date (COD) for all five projects, the Commission noted in a June 12 order. With regard to BESS capacity, the MW rating denotes the maximum amount of power that a BESS system can deliver at any given moment. MWh indicates the total amount of energy that the system can store.

Operational challenges

In recent years, the rapid increase in solar power generation has presented the KSEB with unique operational challenges. Although Kerala often has surplus electricity during daytime, it lacks large energy storage systems to store it for later use. The high demand during the non-solar hours continues to be met through expensive power purchases. Moreover, to accommodate the solar power injected into the grid during the daytime, the KSEB often ‘surrenders’ the power contracted on long-term basis.

In April this year, when Kerala experienced a power shortage, the Regulatory Commission had noted that if the BESS projects could have been commissioned slightly ahead of schedule, the KSEB could have avoided such surrenders of contracted power.

In addition to the aforementioned five projects, a sixth one is also on the anvil. Through a June 12 order, the Regulatory Commission has given the KSEB its approval for establishing a grid-connected BESS at the 220 kV substation premise at Brahmapuram in Ernakulam district.

The Brahmapuram BESS will be established with viability gap funding (VGF) through the Centre’s Power System Development Fund (PSDF) scheme. The Commission, headed by T.K. Jose, has approved a Battery Energy Storage sale agreement the KSEB had signed with M/s Shreyas LFP Energy for establishing the facility. This grid-connected BESS will have a capacity of 250MW/500MWh.