JSW Energy announces GH2 supply for green steel, starts construction of 1 GWh battery in Rajasthan

JSW Energy delivered a double dose of good news for India's cleantech sector. The company announced plans to spearhead development of the country's largest commercial-scale green hydrogen project (and the first in the country for making green steel), while revealing it had also initiated construction for its 1 GW battery energy storage system (BESS) at Fatehgarh in Rajasthan.

The BESS project is expected to be commissioned by June 2025, the company said in a press release. JSW Energy had bagged the project from the Solar Energy Corporation of India Ltd, India's nodal agency for clean energy projects, in 2022. According to the original terms, SECI would have obligation to offtake 60 percent of the power, while JSW Energy would own the balance 40 percent.

The 500 MW / 1 GWh project consists of two BESS installations, each with a capacity of 500 MWh storage and designed to offer two hours of energy backup in one cycle. JSW Energy will develop the project under the Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) mechanism and surrender the project after 12 years.

Declaring its green hydrogen plans, the company said it has signed a seven-year supply agreement with JSW Steel Ltd for offtake of 3,800 tonnes per annum, along with associated green oxygen, progressively rising to around 90,000 TPA of green hydrogen and 720,000 TPA of green oxygen, by 2030.

Detailed engineering work and ordering of equipment has already been completed, and the project is likely to be commissioned during January-March 2025, the company said.

Sharad Mahendra, Joint Managing Director and CEO, said in a statement: "Our green hydrogen project not only underscores our commitment to reducing carbon emissions but also positions us at the forefront of industrial decarbonisation by leveraging sustainable energy solutions… Furthermore, our battery energy storage system project represents a crucial advancement in enhancing grid stability and integrating renewable energy sources, further solidifying our leadership in innovative energy solutions."