Rajasthan has more solar on its grid than any other Indian state — well past 20 GW — and that success created a very specific problem: a mountain of cheap power at noon and almost none after sunset. Battery storage is how the state plans to move that midday surplus into the evening peak. So Rajasthan’s BESS policy is less about one document and more about three layers working together: state-level incentives, a large slice of central subsidy money, and some of the biggest storage tenders India has ever run. This is the Rajasthan-specific companion to our India BESS policy overview.
Layer one: the Rajasthan Renewable Energy Policy 2023
The state’s main policy instrument is the Rajasthan Renewable Energy Policy 2023, which targets around 90 GW of renewable capacity by 2029-30. Crucially for storage, it does not just chase generation — it actively rewards batteries bolted onto renewable projects.
The headline lever is a set of waivers on transmission and wheeling charges (the fees for moving power across the grid). Under the policy:
- A renewable project with co-located storage of at least 5% of its RE capacity gets a 75% waiver on transmission and wheeling charges for seven years.
- That waiver rises by 1% for every additional 1% of storage added, up to a 30% storage share — so the more battery you co-locate, the cheaper your grid access.
- BESS connected at 11 kV or 33 kV distribution substations can get a 100% waiver on transmission and wheeling charges for seven years.
Layered on top is the Rajasthan Investment Promotion Scheme (RIPS), which extends benefits like 100% electricity-duty exemption, stamp-duty relief, and a flexible land-payment model (25% upfront, the rest over ten years) to renewable and storage projects. Together these are aimed squarely at making a solar-plus-BESS build pencil out in Rajasthan.
Layer two: Rajasthan’s 4,000 MWh of central VGF
Rajasthan is one of the biggest winners of India’s central Viability Gap Funding (VGF) support — a grant that writes down the upfront cost of standalone batteries. In the expanded 30 GWh VGF scheme approved by the Ministry of Power in June 2025 (a ₹5,400 crore programme), 25 GWh was split across fifteen states and 5 GWh went to NTPC.
At 4,000 MWh, Rajasthan tied with Gujarat and Maharashtra for the largest state allocation. That VGF is capped at ₹18 lakh per MWh (or up to 40% of capital cost) and is competed down in reverse-auction tenders. For the full mechanics of how the grant is structured and paid, see our VGF scheme explainer.
Layer three: the tenders that turned policy into projects
Policy only matters when it is procured. Rajasthan has moved fast on two fronts.
Standalone BESS. In November 2025, Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Ltd (RRVUNL) — the state generation utility — concluded a tender for a 500 MW / 2,000 MWh standalone battery system at a discovered price of ₹2.85 lakh per MW per month. Reported at the time as India’s lowest so far for a four-hour, single-cycle BESS, the capacity was split across six winning bidders. This followed the central government relaxing its VGF rules to allow the four-hour single-cycle configuration, which improved project economics.
Storage-linked (co-located) solar. In January 2026, Rajasthan issued what has been described as India’s biggest-ever solar-plus-storage tender at the Pugal Solar Park in Bikaner: roughly 2,450 MW of solar coupled with 1,600 MW / 6,400 MWh of BESS, tendered by Rajasthan Solar Park Development Company (RSDCL). The Rajasthan Electricity Regulatory Commission (RERC) approved several deviations from the Centre’s standard bidding norms to enable it. This is a firm, storage-shaped procurement — the battery is not optional, it is the point.
| Rajasthan storage procurement | Type | Size | Notable |
|---|---|---|---|
| RRVUNL standalone BESS (2025) | Standalone | 500 MW / 2,000 MWh | ₹2.85 lakh/MW/month; 4-hour, single-cycle |
| Pugal Solar Park (2026) | Solar + co-located BESS | ≈2,450 MW solar / 6,400 MWh BESS | Among India’s largest solar-plus-storage tenders |
The direction of travel is clear: Rajasthan is buying both standalone batteries — pure grid services, ideal for a standalone BESS — and co-located storage that firms up its enormous solar fleet.
What this means for you
- If you are a developer or IPP: Rajasthan stacks state waivers on top of central VGF, which is why discovered prices here are among the lowest in India. Model the transmission/wheeling waivers carefully — a higher co-located storage share directly cuts your grid charges, up to the 30% cap.
- If you are a DISCOM or bulk buyer: the Pugal and RRVUNL tenders show storage-firmed solar is now procurable at scale in the state. This is the cheapest route to reliable evening-peak power off a solar-heavy grid.
- If you are a C&I (commercial and industrial) buyer: state waivers on wheeling and the RIPS incentives can meaningfully improve the case for a captive solar-plus-BESS system behind or near the meter.
Rajasthan’s storage rules and tender terms change by notification, and both the RE policy waivers and the central VGF caps have already been amended more than once — treat this as a July 2026 snapshot and confirm current provisions before committing. To see roughly what storage could save on your own Rajasthan site, or to talk options with our team, try our BESS savings calculator or get in touch.
Policy snapshot as of July 2026. State policy incentives, VGF caps and tender terms change by government notification; verify current provisions with RRECL / RERC / Ministry of Power documents before financial decisions.