GRIDCO (formerly Grid Corp. of Odisha), an entity that handles the bulk power procurement of distribution companies, has started accepting bids from energy storage system developers to provide 500 MW of energy storage capacity, connected to India's central transmission utility or the Odisha state transmission utility, with five hours of evening peak support.

The selected bidder will supply power to GRIDCO for a period of five years from technology-agnostic energy storage systems, starting from April 1, 2026. The charging power for the energy storage system will be supplied by the developer.

The selection of energy storage system developers for the total capacity of 2,500 MWh will be carried out through competitive tariff-based bidding, followed by an e-reverse auction process. The minimum bid size will be 250 MWh and the maximum bid size will be 1,250 MWh.

The selected developer will be responsible for setting up the energy storage systems and connecting them with the central transmission utility/Odisha state transmission utility. The developer will inject power to the grid in accordance with the dispatch instructions of the State Load Dispatch Centre, Odisha, in consultation with GRIDCO.