Sodium Ion Batteries Could See Wider Adoption in India as Technology Reaches TRL 7

India could see significant growth in sodium ion battery technology as researchers have reached Technology Readiness Level 7 and above. The development was revealed by Renewable Energy Secretary Santosh Kumar Sarangi during the BloombergNEF Summit in New Delhi.

Sarangi said that technologies reaching TRL 7 could move from pilot projects to commercial production within two to three years. He said that the advancement could support wider adoption of sodium ion batteries as India expands energy storage to accommodate the growing share of renewable energy.

Technology Readiness Level is a scale used to measure the maturity of a technology. TRL 7 indicates that a system prototype has been demonstrated in an operational environment.

Sarangi also highlighted developments in vanadium flow batteries, saying domestic manufacturers are building supply capacity. He noted that NTPC Green Energy has placed an order for 100 MW, while higher demand and production volumes could help reduce costs and make the technology more competitive.

According to Central Electricity Authority estimates cited by Sarangi, India is expected to require around 411 GWh of energy storage by 2031 32. He said  that the country is progressing well toward this requirement and could achieve it ahead of schedule.

While India's existing storage capacity remains relatively low, around 156 GWh of battery energy storage systems are currently under process or implementation through tenders and placed orders, Sarangi said.

On battery recycling, he said that the government is addressing the issue under the existing e waste framework, with further provisions to be introduced if required.

Sarangi also said that the government is working on a new scheme to support domestic polysilicon manufacturing. He said  that the earlier Production Linked Incentive scheme is expected to create only limited polysilicon capacity, while India needs substantially higher domestic production to strengthen energy security and manufacturing resilience.

The government is therefore considering support for at least 30 GW of polysilicon manufacturing capacity by 2030, he added.