Indexel Engineering, a family-owned engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) firm based in Rajasthan, has entered a strategic partnership with US-based company UNIGRID to import 50 MWh of sodium-ion batteries. This move represents a significant early deployment of sodium-based energy storage systems in India. The battery systems will be installed across various industrial regions and renewable integration zones in the western part of the country.
Battery deliveries are scheduled to begin in the second half of 2025. Targeted states include Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra. The partnership aims to support industrial-scale energy storage installations as well as microgrid applications. Indexel Engineering intends to offer a storage solution more adapted to the region’s climatic constraints, particularly the extreme temperatures regularly encountered in these areas.
Sodium-based alternatives tailored for the Indian market
The sodium-ion batteries developed by UNIGRID exhibit several distinctive technical attributes compared to currently dominant lithium-ion technologies. Their ability to operate across wide temperature ranges, from -40°C to 60°C, and their non-flammable nature address growing concerns around industrial safety and operational reliability. The use of more abundant and locally accessible raw materials could also reduce dependence on imported critical components.
According to Darren H. S. Tan, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of UNIGRID, India represents a particularly dynamic market for alternative storage technologies. This partnership will expand the company’s commercial footprint while addressing evolving energy needs in a region experiencing rapid demand growth.
Regional rollout and industrial prospects
Indexel Engineering plans to focus the first installations in strategic industrial zones to strengthen grid stability and improve local energy demand management. These projects emerge in a national context where storage infrastructure remains underdeveloped relative to the increasing penetration of intermittent renewable energy.
Anushka Singhal, Energy Division Lead at Indexel, highlighted the suitability of this technology to the Indian subcontinent’s climate conditions. She stated that the solution would help the company pursue a vision of more resilient energy systems, aligned with the operational needs of industrial zones and remote communities.
