India-based energy storage company Greenko Group has broken ground on a 1.44GW pumped storage project in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.
The foundation stone for the pumped hydro storage energy storage project was virtually laid by Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
Located in the Khemla block of Neemuch district, the Indian hydropower project entails an overall investment of INR115bn ($1.38bn) over the next three years.
The pumped storage project will have storage for 7.5 hours. Its capacity will be increased to 1.92GW with six hours of storage to provide a total storage of approximately 11GWh daily.
According to the Indian company, the project will become the largest of its kind in the country.
The hydropower facility will be an off stream open loop project. It involves the construction of a new off stream reservoir, which will be used as the upper reservoir.
The existing Gandhi Sagar Reservoir will be used as lower reservoir by the project.
Greenko Group will develop the proposed upper reservoir by building a 5,970m long and a 35m tall asphalt face rockfill embankment dam (AFRD).
Upon its completion, the pumped hydro storage energy project will have the potential to integrate over 7GW of renewable capacity.
The Indian pumped storage project is scheduled to come online by June 2025.
Greenko Group CEO and managing director Anil Chalamalasetty said: “It is a moment of great pride for Greenko that we have pioneered to deliver 24/7 dispatchable renewable energy solution, for industrial decarbonisation and energy transition.
“Achieving this is made possible through national level policy backing and the forward-thinking guidance of the Honourable Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan ji. Greenko is committed to facilitate a comprehensive shift towards carbon-free energy through integrated solutions.”
During the construction and following its completion, the hydropower facility is estimated to create 4,800 and 200 jobs, respectively.
Greenko Group also plans to make an additional investment of INR150m ($1.8m) in local community projects to support indirect jobs, including small infrastructure contracts, hiring of vehicles, and others.
