Corporate funding for energy storage companies, including venture capital investments, public market funding, and debt financing, increased 5% year-over-year in the first quarter of 2026, according to Mercom Capital Group’s newly released Q1 2026 Funding and M&A Report for Energy Storage. Corporate funding for energy storage companies grew to $2.3 billion across 38 deals, compared to the $2.2 billion raised in 31 deals in Q1 2025.

As India’s solar market matures and policies increasingly mandate minimum storage requirements, the commercial and industrial sector is steadily shifting toward solar-wind hybrid power projects integrated with battery energy storage systems to meet rising power demand, enable smarter energy dispatch, and support grid stability. Industry experts estimate that hybrid renewable energy systems combined with storage can offset 85%-90% of a consumer’s total power requirements.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) said renewable energy generation and supply projects awarded by public sector or government entities to special purpose vehicles of infrastructure investment trusts (InvITs) can be considered public-private partnership projects under the SEBI InvIT Regulations.

Terra Clean, a subsidiary of Indian Oil Corporation, invited bids to set up pooling substations and associated power evacuation systems for 400 MW solar power projects in Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. The successful bidder will also be responsible for the projects’ operation and maintenance for five years.

The Solar Energy Corporation of India invited bids for engineering, design, manufacturing, testing, and supply of five 160 MVA, 220/33-33 KV power transformers for a 700 MW solar project at Radhanesda in Gujarat. The last date to submit bids is June 19, 2026. Bids will be opened on the same day.

Colombia’s electricity market and grid operator, XM, awarded 1,546.9 MW of solar and 246 MW of wind capacity under the Energy and Gas Regulatory Commission’s fifth Firm Energy Obligations auction. The awarded renewable energy capacity across 29 solar and 2 wind projects totaled 1,792 MW, accounting for 45% of the total awarded capacity of 4,069.7 MW, which also included hydroelectric and thermal power.

Annual solar installations rose nearly ninefold from 75 GW in 2016 to 655 GW in 2025, with solar expected to become the largest zero-carbon power source by the end of this decade before overtaking all other generation sources by 2032. The findings are part of BloombergNEF’s New Energy Outlook 2026.