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India's distributed and decentralized energy sector is entering a transformative phase driven by innovation in storage, grid stability, and renewable integration, said Rohit Chandra, Co-Founder and CEO of OMC Power, in an exclusive interaction with ANI.
Chandra announced a strategic partnership between OMC Power and Honda, calling it a landmark collaboration that unites three major Japanese corporations, Honda, Mitsui, and Chubu Electric, as investors in a single Indian energy company. "We are one of the only companies in India, and perhaps in the world, where Mitsui, Chubu, and Honda are investors in the same company," said Chandra. "It's a powerful convergence of technology and clean energy vision." The partnership focuses on repurposing EV batteries for stationary power applications and entering the Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) market. "EV batteries last for about three years. After that, Honda battery technology ensures at least five more years of life. While these may not be fit for vehicles, they are perfect for stationary applications," Chandra explained. He added that deployments will begin from January 2026, with solutions ready for Indian consumers. Chandra emphasized that energy storage is vital to the future of renewable energy in India. "The future of renewables is going to be with storage. Renewables without storage have no future," he said. He also pointed to grid stability as a major challenge: "If renewables are feeding into the grid every now and then, it causes immense issues of stability for the grid. Cost-effective 24x7 solutions are only possible with storage integration." Discussing India's power demand, Chandra said the country's consumption is set to grow fivefold in the medium term. "We believe that India, on an average, needs to climb at least five times of where it is in the short to medium term," he noted. He added that rural and urban consumers alike are demanding reliable electricity. "There is a belief that in villages, people don't want power. It's not true. They want power. They also want to pay for power." On the policy front, Chandra praised India's investment climate. "Policies cannot get any better. The environment for enabling such things is in place. If there was no good policy, if there was no stable business environment, foreign investors would not come," he said. Chandra expressed confidence that India is already a global leader in decentralized renewables. "We are probably driving the largest amount of decentralized solar deployments anywhere in the world. In the next five years, India may end up occupying space number one, two and three," he asserted. Looking ahead to the 2070 net-zero target, Chandra estimated that trillions of dollars will be needed to meet India's rising power needs. "We are talking of trillions of dollars of investment in this sector. When you start combining storage, it becomes more expensive," he said, adding that decentralized renewable solutions offer a fast, sustainable path forward. (ANI)
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