Innovative West Bengal Floating Solar with Battery Energy Storage Project (ADB-56334-001)

Regions
  • South Asia
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Countries
  • India
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Specific Location
Bakreshwar dam reservoir , Birbhum district, West Bengal
Whenever identified, the area within countries where the impacts of the investment may be experienced. Exact locations of projects may not be identified fully or at all in project documents. Please review updated project documents and community-led assessments.
Financial Institutions
  • Asian Development Bank (ADB)
International, regional and national development finance institutions. Many of these banks have a public interest mission, such as poverty reduction.
Project Status
Proposed
Stage of the project cycle. Stages vary by development bank and can include: pending, approval, implementation, and closed or completed.
Bank Risk Rating
B
Environmental and social categorization assessed by the development bank as a measure of the planned project’s environmental and social impacts. A higher risk rating may require more due diligence to limit or avoid harm to people and the environment. For example, "A" or "B" are risk categories where "A" represents the highest amount of risk. Results will include projects that specifically recorded a rating, all other projects are marked ‘U’ for "Undisclosed."
Borrower
Government of India
A public entity (government or state-owned) provided with funds or financial support to manage and/or implement a project.
Sectors
  • Energy
  • Technical Cooperation
The service or industry focus of the investment. A project can have several sectors.
Investment Type(s)
Loan
The categories of the bank investment: loan, grant, guarantee, technical assistance, advisory services, equity and fund.
Investment Amount (USD)
$ 193.15 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Loan Amount (USD)
$ 193.15 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Other Related Projects
Primary Source

Original disclosure @ ADB website

Updated in EWS Feb 5, 2026

Disclosed by Bank Dec 8, 2025

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Project Description
If provided by the financial institution, the Early Warning System Team writes a short summary describing the purported development objective of the project and project components. Review the complete project documentation for a detailed description.

As stated by the ADB, in a densely populated state with competing demands for agricultural, industrial, and residential land, large-scale ground-mounted solar projects face major siting challenges. Floating solar photovoltaic (FPV) systems on existing water bodies can overcome land acquisition hurdles, enhance panel efficiency through water cooling, and reduce evaporation losses. The Bakreshwar dam reservoir located in Birbhum district built by the West Bengal Power Development Corporation Limited (WBPDCL) to supply cooling water for thermal power plantsoffers an ideal site for utility-scale FPV. This dual-use infrastructure model enables sustainable land and water use, while boosting solar panel efficiency and conserving water. Co-locating a battery energy storage system (BESS) will address intermittency of solar power, improve grid stability, and enable peak load management. In addition, the integrated FPV-BESS solution will support West Bengal's RPO compliance, and advance its transition to a low-carbon, resilient power sector.

The proposed project aims to support the Government of West Bengal in delivering clean, reliable, and sustainable electricity through the development of the state's first large-scale FPV power plant, integrated with a utility-scale BESS. The FPV system will be installed on the Bakreshwar dam reservoiroriginally constructed to supply cooling water for a coal-fired plantshowcasing an innovative multi-use infrastructure model.

The project will reduce GHG emissions by generating renewable energy from FPV, while the co-located BESS will enhance grid stability by addressing solar power intermittency and enabling peak demand management. By supplying reliable renewable electricity to rural communities and emerging industrial zones, the project will help improve quality of life, foster inclusive economic development, and strengthen energy security.

In addition, the project will strengthen the institutional capacity of WBPDCL in planning, implementing, and managing utility-scale renewable energy projects. It will serve as a replicable model for other states facing land constraints and catalyze future private sector investment in floating solar and energy storage technologies. Overall, the project will support West Bengal's transition to a low-carbon energy system, while promoting sustainable urbanization, industrial growth, and rural development.

Early Warning System Project Analysis
For a project with severe or irreversible impacts to local community and natural resources, the Early Warning System Team may conduct a thorough analysis regarding its potential impacts to human and environmental rights.

The ADB categorized the project E&S risks as follows:

Environment - B
Involuntary Resettlement - B
Indigenous Peoples - C

Investment Description
Here you can find a list of individual development financial institutions that finance the project.
Private Actors Description
A Private Actor is a non-governmental body or entity that is the borrower or client of a development project, which can include corporations, private equity and banks. This describes the private actors and their roles in relation to the project, when private actor information is disclosed or has been further researched.

As stated on the company's LinkedIn profile, the West Bengal Power Development Corporation Limited (WBPDCL) is the largest state owned power generating company in the eastern region of India and meets around 60% of the state's power demands. 

Private Actor 1 Private Actor 1 Role Private Actor 1 Sector Relation Private Actor 2 Private Actor 2 Role Private Actor 2 Sector
- - - - West Bengal Power Development Corporation Limited (WBPDCL) Contractor Energy

Contact Information
This section aims to support the local communities and local CSO to get to know which stakeholders are involved in a project with their roles and responsibilities. If available, there may be a complaint office for the respective bank which operates independently to receive and determine violations in policy and practice. Independent Accountability Mechanisms receive and respond to complaints. Most Independent Accountability Mechanisms offer two functions for addressing complaints: dispute resolution and compliance review.

ADB Team Leader:

Choon Sik Jung
Email: cjung@adb.org 

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

You can submit an information request for project information at: https://www.adb.org/forms/request-information-form

ADB has a two-stage appeals process for requesters who believe that ADB has denied their request for information in violation of its Access to Information Policy. You can learn more about filing an appeal at: https://www.adb.org/site/disclosure/appeals

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF ADB

The Accountability Mechanism is an independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who believe they are likely to be, or have been, adversely affected by an Asian Development Bank-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the Accountability Mechanism, they may investigate to assess whether the Asian Development Bank is following its own policies and procedures for preventing harm to people or the environment. You can learn more about the Accountability Mechanism and how to file a complaint at: http://www.adb.org/site/accountability-mechanism/main.

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How it works