Union Power Minister Inaugurates Mega Energy Storage Battery System At NTPC NETRA

New Delhi, Nov 12 (KNN) Union Minister of Power Manohar Lal inaugurated India’s first and largest MWh-scale Vanadium Redox Flow Battery (VRFB) system with a capacity of 3 MWh at National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) National Energy Technology Research Alliance (NETRA) R&D Centre in Noida.

The project marks a key step in India’s pursuit of long-duration energy storage (LDES) solutions, aimed at improving renewable energy integration and grid stability.

The Minister was accompanied by Pankaj Agarwal, Secretary (Power), Additional Secretary Piyush Singh, and senior officials from the Ministry of Power. He was received by Gurdeep Singh, CMD, NTPC, along with senior NTPC executives.

The VRFB is an emerging storage technology that complements lithium-ion systems and expands material options for building sustainable, diversified energy storage solutions.

Commending the NETRA team, Manohar Lal said “India’s research and innovation capabilities are creating new benchmarks in sustainable development and energy transition”. 

He highlighted the importance of indigenous technology development for strengthening the country’s energy security framework.

During the visit, the Minister also reviewed NTPC’s ongoing R&D initiatives in carbon capture, green hydrogen, energy storage, and waste-to-energy technologies.

He visited several operational demonstration plants at NETRA, including Green Hydrogen Mobility Plant, Water-based Green Hydrogen Plant, Enhanced Steam Gasification Plant, Battery Energy Storage Systems, and NETRA’s NABL-accredited laboratories.

The launch of the VRFB system aims to develop advanced clean energy technologies and position India as a leader in long-duration energy storage.

(KNN Bureau)