Uttarakhand Floats 100MW/250MWh Standalone BESS Tender

Uttarakhand Power Corporation Limited (UPCL) has issued a tender for the development of a 100 MW / 250 MWh standalone Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) across multiple substations in the state. Bids have been invited until March 10, 2026, marking one of the most significant storage procurement initiatives in Uttarakhand to date.

The tender has been structured in three parts, with projects distributed across strategic load centres and substations based on land availability and load flow requirements.

Project Breakdown by Capacity and Location

36 MW / 90 MWh across substations in Rudrapur, Kashipur, Haldwani, and Pithoragarh, covering districts such as Udham Singh Nagar and Nainital.
23 MW / 57.5 MWh across seven locations in Dehradun.
41 MW / 102.5 MWh across six locations including Uttarkashi, Haridwar, and Roorkee.

Together, these clusters will cumulatively deliver 100 MW of power capacity with 250 MWh of storage capability.

Scope of Work and Development Model

Under the tender conditions, selected developers—designated as Battery Energy Storage System Developers (BESSDs)—will be responsible for:

Site survey and land assessment
Detailed design and engineering
Financing
Supply and installation
Testing and commissioning
Long-term operation and maintenance

The projects will be implemented on a Build–Own–Operate (BOO) model, supported by Viability Gap Funding (VGF). The BESS systems will be grid-interactive and made available to UPCL on an “on-demand” charging and discharging basis.

Applications and Grid Role

The primary use cases identified for the BESS installations include:

Energy time-shift (arbitrage)
Ramping support for grid stability

To maximise utilisation and enhance economic viability, the systems will also be capable of delivering:

Frequency support and ancillary services
Capacity upgrade deferral
Resource adequacy support
Backup supply to critical loads
Black start capability

This multi-application design reflects a strategic move toward optimising grid flexibility in a state experiencing growing renewable integration and load variability.