The Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee has released a comprehensive national-level study outlining a strategic path forward for Pumped Storage Hydropower (PSP) in India, a technology seen as essential for managing the country’s fast-growing renewable energy grid.
The report was released on April 13 by Santosh Kumar Sarangi, Secretary of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE). It was developed under the leadership of Prof Arun Kumar and draws on input from PSP developers, financial institutions, regulators, and equipment suppliers across the country.
Sarangi underlined why timing matters: “Pumped Storage Hydropower will play a critical role in enabling large-scale integration of renewable energy and ensuring grid stability in the years ahead. As India accelerates towards its Net Zero targets, such evidence-based studies are essential to guide policy, investment, and implementation.”
WHAT IS PUMPED STORAGE HYDROPOWER?
India has pledged to achieve 500 GW of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030 and net-zero emissions by 2070. As solar and wind capacity scales up rapidly, grid stability becomes an acute challenge as renewable sources generate power only when the sun shines or wind blows.
PSP addresses this directly. It works like giant batteries, using surplus power to pump water uphill, then releasing it through turbines during peak demand, with up to 80% efficiency.
India currently has around 4.8 GW of installed PSP capacity, but the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) has identified a national potential exceeding 100 GW, with much of it yet to be tapped.
WHAT DID THE IIT REPORT SAY?
The study maps out the policy, regulatory, financial, and technological barriers holding back PSP deployment, and then recommends concrete ways to overcome them.
Amongst its more forward-looking proposals, the report explores sea-based PSP systems along India’s western coastline and the use of abandoned mines as decentralised storage sites, to reduce the land footprint of new projects and lower environmental impact.
The report also stresses the need for India to reduce its dependence on imported PSP technology.
Prof Arun Kumar said India “must invest heavily in research and development to increase the indigenous development of those PSP technologies that we still import.”
Ghanshyam Prasad, Chairman of the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), highlighted the need for “coordinated policy support, stakeholder alignment, and accelerated deployment” to meet India’s growing energy demands sustainably.
