GERC Draft Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) Regulations, 2026
Gujarat’s first dedicated battery-storage framework — covering how BESS is planned, procured, owned, scheduled and paid for across generation, transmission, distribution and standalone deployments, plus open access, aggregators and multi-use revenue stacking.
Gujarat’s first standalone storage rulebook
A comprehensive framework for grid-interactive battery storage in the state.
Until now, battery storage in Gujarat lived in the gaps between generation, open-access and tariff rules. This draft creates a single, dedicated framework defining a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) as an electrochemical device that absorbs electricity from the grid or generation, stores it, and discharges it when required — and sets out how every such system is to be planned, procured, owned, operated and settled.
It applies to all entities: generating companies, transmission and distribution licensees, standalone BESS developers, captive plants, consumers/prosumers with storage, and aggregators. All grid-connected BESS in the state must register with GEDA (no separate registration where storage is built into a new RE project that already declares the BESS component).
⚠ This is a draft, not yet in force
The Commission has published this draft for stakeholder comments. Project sizes, procurement routes and settlement mechanisms below reflect the draft text and may change before notification. Several operating procedures (SLDC scheduling, ancillary services, pool accounting) are still to be framed after notification.
Impact on consumers
How the BESS draft changes the picture for each consumer category.
Commercial
- Storage now allowed behind the meter (with DISCOM approval)
- Use it for peak shaving and bill management
- Open access to BESS — contract third-party storage
- Aggregators can pool your battery for grid-service revenue
Industrial
- Co-locate BESS with captive/RE plants to firm output
- Standalone (≥1 MW, 2-hour) for arbitrage & ancillary services
- Multi-use revenue stacking across functions
- Helps meet Energy Storage Obligations
Residential
- Add a battery to rooftop solar for self-consumption
- Allowed under net/gross/group/virtual metering
- Exempt from the 1 MW minimum size
- EV charging with V2G/G2V recognised
Government
- Deploy distribution- & transmission-linked BESS
- For resource adequacy, peak management, RE integration
- Procured through competitive bidding
- Hosted on public land or substations
Hospitals
- Critical-care reliability is the headline benefit
- Resilient backup and peak smoothing behind the meter
- Pairs with rooftop solar for 24×7 clean power
Four deployment models
BESS can sit anywhere on the value chain — each model has its own planning, procurement and scheduling treatment.
Generation-linked (co-located)
Co-located with renewable or conventional generation for firming, shaping and despatchability. Scheduled as part of the host station; charged only from the associated plant. No separate connectivity/OA approval if injection stays within the granted quantum.
GenCos, RE developers, CGPsTransmission-linked
Part of the State Transmission System Plan — for congestion management, deferring network augmentation and integrating large-scale RE. Operated under SLDC control, with costs/benefits shared among beneficiaries via a separate pool account.
Transmission licenseesDistribution-linked
Deployed at substation, feeder, distribution-transformer or consumer (aggregated) level for peak management, loss reduction, voltage support and ESO compliance. Helps DISCOMs meet Energy Storage Obligations.
Distribution licenseesStandalone
Independent storage participating in energy, capacity and ancillary-service markets — merchant, bilateral or contract models. Treated as a separate entity for scheduling and despatch; installable by third-party service providers.
Independent storage providersMinimum size & connectivity
Standalone/grid-scale BESS must be at least 1 MW with 2-hour energy rating, connected at 11 kV or above. This minimum does not apply to DTR-level units, captive co-location, or consumer/prosumer storage under NM/NB/GM/GNM/VNM. The 2-hour rule may relax below 2 hours for ancillary/frequency-regulation use co-located with existing stations.
Ownership, procurement & tariff
Open ownership
BESS may be owned by GenCos, transmission/distribution licensees, IPPs, captive plants, RE developers, independent storage providers, consumers/prosumers or aggregators. The BESS takes the legal status of its owner.
Competitive bidding first
BESS is to be procured as a service through competitive bidding under Section 63, with tariff discovered as an availability-based fixed charge per the MoP Guidelines of 10 March 2022 (or Gujarat-adopted versions). Section 62 cost-plus is allowed only in exceptional cases with prior Commission approval.
Network alternative
Transmission and distribution licensees may evaluate BESS as an alternative to conventional network augmentation, backed by a techno-commercial cost-benefit analysis submitted for Commission approval.
ESO linkage
The framework supports Energy Storage Obligation compliance under the GERC (Procurement of Power from RE Sources) Regulations, 2025 — a lever DISCOMs and obligated entities will increasingly need.
Open access, aggregators & revenue stacking
Open Access to BESS
Open access and related charges for BESS are governed by the GERC Intra-State Open Access Regulations, 2011 and the Green Energy Open Access Regulations, 2024 — the same framework C&I consumers already use, now extended to storage.
Aggregator framework
Aggregators registered with the DISCOM may pool standalone BESS across multiple sites to provide services to SLDC, licensees and market participants — opening storage to smaller consumers via aggregation.
Multi-use revenue stacking
A standalone BESS may serve several functions — energy arbitrage, ancillary services, peak management, congestion relief — provided capacity is earmarked per function. Revenues are accounted separately to prevent double recovery.
Priority of use
When functions compete, the order is fixed: grid security → ancillary obligations → contractual commitments → market participation. SLDC holds over-riding control during contingencies.
Behind-the-meter storage, safety & end-of-life
Prosumer storage allowed
Consumers/prosumers under NM/NB/GM/GNM/VNM may install BESS at their premises — standalone or with RE — with prior DISCOM/transmission-licensee approval and GEDA registration, for self-consumption.
EV & V2G
BESS integrated with EV charging and battery-swapping stations is recognised, including Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) and Grid-to-Vehicle (G2V) services.
Safety & cybersecurity
Must comply with CEA safety regulations (2023), CEA technical standards (2022) and MeitY/CEA/MoP cybersecurity guidelines. Real-time data to SLDC in the prescribed format.
End-of-life
Battery disposal follows the Battery Waste Management Rules, 2022 — responsibility resting with the BESS owner.
Procedures still to be framed
Much of the operational detail follows after notification — worth tracking if you’re planning a project.
| What | Who frames it | Timeline (from notification) |
|---|---|---|
| GEDA registration & commissioning SOP | GEDA, with STU/SLDC/DISCOMs | Within 3 months |
| Scheduling & energy accounting of co-located BESS | SLDC | Within 2 months |
| Pool-account cost/benefit sharing (transmission BESS) | SLDC | Within 1 month |
| Ancillary-services eligibility criteria | SLDC, with STU/DISCOMs | Within 2 months |
| Ancillary-services settlement & commercial mechanism | SLDC | Within 4 months |
The road here
- Mar 2022MoP Guidelines for procurement & utilisation of BESS as generation, transmission and distribution assets — the bidding template this draft adopts.
- 2025GERC (Procurement of Power from RE Sources) Regulations introduce Energy Storage Obligations for obligated entities.
- 12 May 2026Draft BESS Regulations 2026 published — four deployment models, open access, aggregators, multi-use revenue.
- Now · consultationStakeholder comments invited. Sizes, procurement routes and settlement mechanisms may change before notification.
- Post-notificationSLDC and GEDA frame the operating procedures (1–4 months) before the framework is fully operational.
Quick answers
Can a third party build standalone storage and sell into the market?
What’s the minimum project size?
How is BESS procured — cost-plus or bidding?
Can one battery earn from multiple services?
Does open access apply to storage?
Evaluating storage for firming, arbitrage or ESO?
The BESS draft opens four routes to deploy storage in Gujarat — each with different procurement, scheduling and revenue rules. GEOA.in tracks the consultation and models the economics for C&I and developer projects.
View the GERC draft & submit comments →Source: Draft GERC (Grid Interactive Battery Energy Storage System) Regulations, 2026, published by the Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission, Gandhinagar, 12 May 2026, under the Electricity Act 2003 (ss. 181, 61, 66, 86). Full draft and consultation details at gercin.org. This explainer is for information only and is not legal advice; refer to the official regulation for binding text.