“PROJECT REPORT”

A STUDY ON
SOLAR ENERGY ASPECTS
IN INDIA
Submitted to
INDIRA GANDHI NATIONAL OPEN
UNIVERSITY(IGNOU)
For the requirements for the award of the degree of
Bchelor of Arts (BA)
Course-Human environment (AHE-01)
By
NAME: SANDEEP KUMAR
ENROLLMENT NO: 191069967
Under the guidance of
…………………………………..
…………………………………..
…………………………………...
…………………………………...
INDIRA GANDHI NATIONAL OPEN UNIVERSITY
MAIDAN GARHI
NEW DELHI-110068
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“A STUDY
ON SOLAR
ENERGY
ASPECTS IN
INDIA”

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 CERTIFICATE

It is certified that Project work entitled “A STUDY ON SOLAR ENERGY

ASPECTS IN INDIA” submitted by Mr. Sandeep Kumar is his own work and
has been done under my supervision.

It is recommended that this project be placed before the examination for

evaluation.

(signature of the supervisior)

Name…………………………………..

Study centre…………………………….

Regional centre…………………………

Date…………………………………….

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

“Hope and misery, toll and revelry, cheer and dejection…….

Are all those going behind the success of this project?”

Any assignment puts to litmus test of an individual knowledge credibility or

experience and thus sole efforts of an individual are not sufficient to accomplish the desire
successful completion of a project involve interest and effort of many people and so this
becomes obligatory on the part to record our thanks to those who helped us out in the
successful completion of our project.

Life is a process of accumulating and discharging debts, not all of those can be
measured. We can not hope to discharge them with simple words of thanks but we can
certainly acknowledge them.

At this level of understanding it is often difficult to comprehend and assimilate a wide

spectrum of knowledge without proper guidance and advice. Hence, I would like to take this
opportunity to express our Heartfelt Gratitude to Respected teachers, for his round the clock
Enthusiastic Support, Noble guidance and encouragement which made this project
successful. We are extremely thankful to him for making this project watchful.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

 Energy……………………………………….…………………6

 Renewable Energy………………………………..……………9

 Solar Energy- Global……………………….………………….13

 Solar Energy - India……………………………………………15

 SWOT Analysis of the Indian Solar Sector……………………20

 Ministry of New and Renewable Energy(MNRE)…………….27

 Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited

(IREDA)…………………………………………………………29

 Solar Energy Corporation of India Ltd (SECI)………………..31

 Central Govt. Policies & Incentives to Solar Power Sector..….32

 Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission……………………33

 State wise Policies & Incentives to Solar Power Sector..……41

 Renewable Energy Certificates………………………………54

 Top 10 Solar Companies in India…………………………….58

 Conclusion……………………………………………………61

 Future Outlook………………………………………… …..61

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 Energy
Energy is integral to our lives in the 21st century. Energy keeps us warm, cools us
down, and cooks our meals. It helps us connect with our children, and lights the garages and
labs of entrepreneurs and inventors building a better world. Energy harvests our food, fuels
our factories, builds our cities, and cleans our water. It keeps us mobile and connected with
others near and far. The 21st century already has witnessed major changes in how people use
energy – for example, Internet-connected smartphones were introduced only around 2000;
today there are more than 2.5 billion of them worldwide. This century also has seen
tremendous advances in energy technology – including the ones that unlocked North
America’s vast resources of unconventional oil and natural gas. Together, these technologies
have ushered in a new era of energy abundance – and diversity. Today, our energy can come
from deep below the ocean floor, beds of shale rock, nuclear fission, biofuels, the wind and
the sun. And importantly, development and use of each of these energy sources continues to
evolve in ways that reduce impacts on the environment. While energy supplies are evolving,
fundamentals on the demand side have been undergoing their own dynamics. Many
economies continue to struggle, even more than five years after the global recession, while
others, including that of China, continue to expand significantly, albeit at a more modest
pace. Even so, global economic output has risen about 50 percent since 2000, with better
living standards for hundreds of millions of people.

Another positive trend is our ability to find ways to use energy far more efficiently, curbing
growth in energy usage and emissions. The world uses about 10 percent less energy per unit
of economic output than it did in 2000, with half of this gain occurring since 2010. Still, the
need for energy remains vast. Global demand for energy rose by about one-third from 2000
to 2015, with China accounting for about half of this growth. Meeting growing energy
demand is an ongoing challenge, recognizing the scale of supplies required to meet the needs
of 7 billion people each day. The use of oil alone – representing just one-third of the world’s
energy consumption – is now approaching 95 million barrels a day, enough to power a car
100 billion miles, or 4 million times around the world. Several themes remain true today:
Modern energy is fundamental to our standards of living; practical options for meeting
people’s energy needs continue to expand, including those related to efficiency; and the
energy industry is huge, growing and connecting regions through trade.

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 Energy industry
The energy industry is the totality of all of the industries involved in the production
and sale of energy, including fuel extraction, manufacturing, refining and distribution.
Modern society consumes large amounts of fuel, and the energy industry is a crucial part of
the infrastructure and maintenance of society in almost all countries.

In particular, the energy industry comprises:

 the petroleum industry, including oil companies, petroleum refiners, fuel transport and
end-user sales at gas stations
 the gas industry, including natural gas extraction, and coal gas manufacture, as well as
distribution and sales
 the electrical power industry, including electricity generation, electric power
distribution and sales
 the coal industry
 the nuclear power industry
 the renewable energy industry, comprising alternative energy and sustainable
energy companies, including those involved in hydroelectric power, wind power,
and solar power generation, and the manufacture, distribution and sale of alternative fuels
 traditional energy industry based on the collection and distribution of firewood, the
use of which, for cooking and heating, is particularly common in poorer countries

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 Sources of energy

Sources of energy

Conventional sources of energy Non conventional sources of energy

SOLID- coal, coke, cokeanthracite etc. Solar energy

LIQUIDS- petroleum and its

Nuclear energy
derivatives

GASES- natural gas, blastfurnace gas

Tidal energy
etc

Geothermal energy

Wind energy

Thermoelectric energy

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 Renewable energy
Renewable energy is generally defined as energy that is collected
from resources which are naturally replenished on a human timescale, such
as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, waves, and geothermal heat. Based on REN21's 2014
report, renewables contributed 19 percent to humans' global energy
consumption and 22 percent to their generation of electricity in 2012 and 2013,
respectively. This energy consumption is divided as 9% coming from traditional
biomass, 4.2% as heat energy (non-biomass), 3.8% hydro electricity and 2% is
electricity from wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass. Worldwide investments in
renewable technologies amounted to more than US$214 billion in 2013, with
countries like China and theUnited States heavily investing in wind, hydro, solar and
biofuels.

Renewable energy resources exist over wide geographical areas, in contrast to other
energy sources, which are concentrated in a limited number of countries. Rapid
deployment of renewable energy and energy efficiency is resulting in
significant energy security, climate change mitigation, and economic benefits. At the
national level, at least 30 nations around the world already have renewable energy
contributing more than 20 percent of energy supply. National renewable energy
markets are projected to continue to grow strongly in the coming decade and
beyond.Some places and at least two countries, Iceland and Norway generate all
their electricity using renewable energy already, and many other countries have the
set a goal to reach 100% renewable energy in the future.

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 TOP 10 COUNTRIES WITH HIGHEST % OF
RENEWABLES
Series1
98
100
90
79
80 73.4
70
70 62.8 62.6 62.5
58.5
60
50 42.8 42.1
40
30
20
10
0
Norway New Brazil Colombia Venezuela Portugal Canada Sweden Chile Italy
Zealand

The graph represents the top 10 countries with highest % of renewables in their sources oof
energy,

% OF RENEWABLES IN DEVELOPING
COUNTRIES
100

90

80

70

60

50

40
28.3
30
22.9
20.1
20 16.2 14.9
13.7 12.1
10

0
US China India UK Germany Australia Japan

The graph represents the share of renewable sources of energy in the major econmies of the
world.
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 investment
investment
350 328.93
318.35 315.85
296.99
300
273.73 271.91
250
205.56 207.26
200
174.93
150 128.31

100 88.05
61.86
50

0
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

140

120

100

Europe
80
US
China
60 India
Brazil
40

20

0
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

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 Sources of energy – India

Renewable energy composition

4,161.00 127

4,550.00

6,763.00
26,744.00

Wind Power Solar Power (SPV) Biomass Small Hydro Power Waste to Power

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 Solar energy- global
Solar energy is the energy received in the form heat and radiations from sun. Mankind
has been harnessing solar energy since ancient times using ever-evolving technologies. The
Earth receives 174 petawatts (PW) of incoming solar radiation (isolation) at the upper
atmosphere. Approximately 30% is reflected back to space while the rest is absorbed by
clouds, oceans and land masses. The amount of solar energy reaching the surface of the
planet is so vast that in one year it is about twice as much as will ever be obtained from all of
the Earth's on renewable resources of coal, oil, natural gas, and mined uranium combined.
Solar energy can be harnessed in different levels around the world. Depending on a
geographical location the closer to the equator the more "potential" solar energy is available

Solar energy has experienced an impressive technological shift. While early solar
technologies consisted of small-scale photovoltaic (PV) cells, recent technologies are
represented by solar concentrated power (CSP) and also by large-scale (PV) systems that
feed into electricity grids. The costs of solar energy technologies have dropped
substantially over the last 30 years.

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The rapid expansion of the solar energy market can be attributed to a number of supportive
policy instruments, the increased volatility of fossil fuel prices and the environmental
externalities of fossil fuels, particularly greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

It is visible that though energy usage from renewables is increasing but still the majority of
energy is supplied by fossil fuels and there is a long time before world becomes
independent from fossil-fuel usage. There is a need of continuous improvement and
implementation of renewable technologies.

The installed capacity of solar power is as follows:

INSTALLED CAPACITY OF SOLAR

45
POWER

40 38.25

35

30 28.33

25 23.4

20 18.66 18.31

15

10
5.6 5.3
5 4.1
3.15

0
Germany China Japan Italy US France Spain Australia Belgium

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 Solar Energy Sector - India
. India is facing an acute energy scarcity which is hampering its industrial growth and
economic progress. Setting up of new power plants is inevitably dependent on import of
highly volatile fossil fuels. Thus, it is essential to tackle the energy crisis through judicious
utilization of abundant the renewable energy resources, such as Biomass Energy solar
Energy, Wind Energy and Geothermal Energy. Apart from augmenting the energy supply,
renewable resources will help India in mitigating climate change. India is heavily dependent
on fossil fuels for its energy needs. Most of the power generation is carried out by coal and
mineral oil-based power plants which contribute heavily to greenhouse gases emission.

Solar Power a clean renewable resource with zero emission, has got tremendous
potential of energy which can be harnessed using a variety of devices. With recent
developments, solar energy systems are easily available for industrial and domestic use with
the added advantage of minimum maintenance. Solar energy could be made financially viable
with government tax incentives and rebates. Most of the developed countries are switching
over to solar energy as one of the prime renewable energy source. The current architectural
designs make provision for photovoltaic cells and necessary circuitry while making building
plans. Because of its location between the Tropic of Cancer and the Equator, India has an
average annual temperature that ranges from 25°C – 27.5 °C. This means that India has huge
solar potential. The sunniest parts are situated in the south/east coast, from Calcutta to
Madras.
The sun, says the Rig Veda, is the soul of all beings. Yoga, a globally acclaimed
symbol of India’s soft power, begins with the surya namaskar. Today, faced with our soaring
energy demand, potentially irreversible climate change and depleting fossil fuel reserves, we
are now turning to the sun for clean and renewable power, which will not only safeguard the
nation’s long-term energy security but also the future of the planet. India as a civilisation has
revered nature for its life-giving properties and has been powered by renewable sources since
ancient times. Modern India generates almost a third of its power using renewables sources -
water, wind and a small part from the sun (<1%) while the rest comes largely from fossil
fuels (coal, oil, gas). These fuels have been the mainstays of power generation for the past
few decades and would have continued to do so but for their escalating prices. Also, an
ongoing lack of consistent fuel supply to meet even the current demand, along with the
clamour against global warming, has put the energy industry under increased pressure and the
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focus is now on renewable sources of power like the sun, water, geothermal, biomass and
wind.
Large hydro projects, comprising almost a third of the current power generation
sources, have hit numerous roadblocks due to people displacement, global warming, habitat
destruction and land submergence. Biomass initially started off well but due to unplanned
supply chain issues, has resulted in almost 75% of the 2 GW installed capacity coming to a
standstill. Tidal and geothermal are almost non-existent in India while wind has played a
significant role in increasing the acceptability of renewables, but hasn't really contributed to a
scalable solution. Biomass has been an abject failure due to fuel price rise, with 75% of the
installed 2 GW capacity currently without adequate biomass supply. Wind turbines generate
unscheduled power for just a few months, making them unsuitable for mainstream power
generation, especially in the Indian context, and were only successful due to huge corporate
tax benefits

India’s substantial and sustained economic growth is placing enormous demand on its
energy resources. The demand and supply imbalance in energy sources is Pervasive requiring
serious efforts by GoI to augment energy supplies. India imports about 80% of its oil. There
is a threat of these increasing further, creating serious problems for India’s future energy
security. There is also a significant risk of lesser thermal capacity being installed on account
of lack of indigenous coal in the coming years because of both production and logistic
constraints, and increased dependence on imported coal. Significant accretion of gas reserves
and production in recent years is likely to mitigate power needs only to a limited extent.
Difficulties of large hydro are increasing and nuclear power is also beset with problems. The
country thus faces possible severe energy supply constraints.
Economic growth, increasing prosperity and urbanization, rise in per capita
consumption, and spread of energy access are the factors likely to substantially increase the
total demand for electricity. Thus there is an emerging energy supply-demand imbalance.
Already, in the electricity sector, official peak deficits are of the order of 12.7%, which could
increase over the long term.

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 Radiation Rate
The solar energy potential in India is immense due to its convenient location near the
Equator. India receives nearly 3000 hours of sunshine every year, which is equivalent to 5000
trillion kWh of energy. As shown in Exhibit 1, India can generate over 1,900 billion units of
solar power annually, which is enough to service the entire annual power demand even in
2030 (estimates). Rajasthan and Gujarat are the regions with maximum solar energy
potential. This, coupled with the availability of barren land, increases the feasibility of solar
energy systems in these regions. Considering India’s solar potential, the government has
rolled out various policies and subsidy schemes to encourage growth of the Solar Industry,
which is expected to experience exponential growth in the coming years

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With about 300 clear, sunny days in a year, India's theoretically calculated solar
energy incidence on its land area alone, is about 5,000 trillion kilowatt-hours (kWh)
per year (or 5 EWh/yr). The solar energy available in a year exceeds the possible
energy output of all fossil fuel energy reserves in India. The daily average solar
power plant generation capacity over India is 0.25 kWh per m2 of used land area,
which is equivalent to about 1,500–2,000 peak (rated) capacity operating hours in a
year with the available commercially-proven technologies.

7000

6267

6000

5000 4680
CAPACITY IN MV

4000

3000
2632
2319

2000

1205

1000
461
161

0
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 31st march
2016
YEAR

The graph shows the increase in installed capacity of solar projects over a period time. It is
clearly evident from the graph that the solar sector is showing tremendous growth in the
country.

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 State wise installed capacity

STATE WISE INSTALLED CAPACITY

Puducherry 0.02
Arunachal Pradesh 0.26
Lakshadweep 0.75
Others 0.79
Daman & Diu 4
Uttarakhand 5
Tripura 5
Bihar 5
Chandigarh 5.04
Andaman & Nicobar 5.1
Delhi 6.71
West Bengal 7.21
Kerala 12.02
Haryana 12.8
Jharkhand 16
Odisha 66.92
Chhattisgarh 73.18
Karnataka 104.22
Uttar Pradesh 140
Punjab 300.32
Maharashtra 378.7
Telangana 392.39
Tamil Nadu 562.94
Andhra Pradesh 566
Madhya Pradesh 678.58
Gujarat 1024.15
Rajasthan 1264.35

0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400

As seen in the graph the state of Rajasthan leads the solar sector with maximum capacity
utilization followed by Gujarat. The major states with maximum installed capacity are Tamil
Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Maharashtra.

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 SWOT analysis of the Indian solar sector
Strength Weakness
 Good resource potential  Absence of conducive policies in
 Technological innovations some states
 Emergence of indigenous  Acceptability by end users
manufacturers  Inconvenience
 Decentralised energy solutions  Quality and consistency of
 Independent Ministry: renewable energy as compared to
 Adequate Budgetary support for non-renewable energy
promoting renewable energy  Lack of man power
technologies:  Staffing:
 Existence of specialised technical  Inadequate database management,
institutions: documentation/ recording system:
 Technical skills of officials:
 Wide mandate:
Opportunities Threats
 High potential  High subsidy on conventional
 Favourable government policies energy
 Demand-supply gap  Lack of low cost funding
 Employment opportunities  Dependence on other Departments/
 Increasing energy requirements Agencies

Strengths
 Good resource potential
As stated since the country lies above the equator in tropical region the
radiation is good enough to generate solar power.
 Technological innovations
With developments in technology a lot of innovations are being made in
equipment to make them easily accessible.
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 Emergence of indigenous manufacturers
The growth of solar sector has given rise to a class of indigenous
manufacturers of solar equipment making it cost effective.
 Decentralised energy solutions
The decentralisation of solar power i.e. the off grid projects are an impetus to
growth of this sector.
 Independent Ministry
The Ministry is the nodal ministry of the GOI at the federal level for all
matters relating to new and renewable energy. It is the only such ministry in the world,
dedicated towards promotion of renewable energy sector. This enables focussed
attention as well as high degree of autonomy in formulation of sector specific plans and
policies.
 Adequate Budgetary support for promoting renewable energy technologies
The growing concern over use of fossil fuels and the potential and prospects
offered by renewable energy sources has been a driving force for allocation of adequate
budgetary support to the Ministry for implementation of its programmes. However, this
support needs to be substantially up-scaled in the coming years.
 Existence of specialised technical institutions
The Ministry has three specialized technical institutions functioning under its
control – SEC, C-WET and NIRE (being operationalised). These are a definite strength
of the Ministry for coordinating the research, design, development and demonstration
activities in their respective fields. However, they need strengthening, particularly SEC.
 Technical skills of officials
The officers of the ministry and its technical institutions are mostly highly
qualified scientists/ engineers, which is a definite asset.
 Wide mandate
The Ministry’s mandate covers promotion of all forms of new and renewable
energy resources which are aligned to the emerging global energy scenario.

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 Weakness
 Absence of policies in some states
Although the centre has formulated conducive policies, there is lack of
planning and formulating the policies on the behalf of the states. States such as
Rajasthan and Gujarat have been able to attract investments in this sector due to their
attractive policy.
 Acceptability by end users
One of the major obstacles for solar sector is its acceptability in the market by
the end users. Solar power is costly in comparison with other sources.
 Quality and consistency of renewable energy as compared to non-renewable energy
The quality and consistency of solar power cannot be standardised as its
generation depends on the radiation rate.
 Lack of man power
There is an acute of human resource for the development of this sector. We
have human resources in quantity but without quality.
 Staffing
It is noted that while the deployment and development activities of the
Ministry have been gradually increasing, the availability of scientific manpower has
been shrinking because of retirements and absence of fresh recruitments in past. This
problem has to be resolved.
 Inadequate database management, documentation/ recording system:
These are problem areas and needs to be strengthened. A Resource Centre
needs to be developed and more expertise in finance, economics and evaluation studies
is also required.

Opportunities

 High potential
With the use of conventional energy at peak and high dependency and fossil
fuels, it is the need of the hour to shift to renewable energy.
 Favourable government policies
The ministry of new renewable energy is playing an active role in formulating
policies conducive to the growth of solar industry in the country.
 Employment opportunities

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 Development of solar sector will to increase in need of skilled labour thereby
increasing the employment opportunities
 Increasing energy requirements
India is a country with high population and there is an increasing demand for
energy which can be met through solar energy.

 Demand-supply gap
There is high deficit in the demand and supply of electricity in the country.
Hence it is an opportunity for development of solar sector.

Threats
 High subsidy on conventional energy
A high amount of subsidy is provided for energy obtained from conventional
sources which makes them cost effective and results in high cost of renewables as
compared to non-renewables
 Lack of low cost funding
The solar equipment require huge funding for purchasing of costly solar
equipment. To fulfil this need the funding is provided at high interest rate.
 Dependence on other Departments/ Agencies
The performance under various programmes is sometimes critically dependent
on other Departments/Organizations. Besides, state units need to be strengthened. State

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 power authorities do not bother much about renewable energy and generally this is yet
to get importance. This perception both in the centre and the state needs to change.

Application of solar energy

Power plants

Remote
Homes
applications

Solar cars
Solar Commercial
use
energy

Ventilation
Solar lighting
system

Power
pumps

Solar energy can be used in various forms:

1. Power plants: In conventional power plants non-renewable energy sources are used
to boil water and form stream so that turbines can rotate and water to produce
electricity. But with application of solar energy heat of sun can boil that water to
create steam and rotate turbines. To convert sunlight into electricity solar panels,
photoelectric technologies and thermoelectric technologies etc are used.
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2. Homes: Use of solar energy is increasing in homes as well. Residential appliances
can easily use electricity generated through solar power. Besides this solar energy is
running solar heater to supply hot water in homes. Through photovoltaic cell installed
on the roof of the house energy is captured and stored on batteries to use throughout
the day at homes for different purposes. In this ways expenditure on energy is cutting
down by home users.
3. Commercial use: on roofs of different buildings we can find glass PV modules or
any other kind of solar panel. These panels are used there to supply electricity to
different offices or other parts of building in a reliable manner. These panels collect
solar energy from sun, convert it into electricity and allow offices to use their own
electrical power for different purposes.
4. Ventilation system: at many places solar energy is used for ventilation purposes. It
helps in running bath fans, floor fans, and ceiling fans in buildings. Fans run almost
every time in a building to control moisture, and smell and in homes to take heat out
of the kitchen. It can add heavy amount on the utility bills, to cut down these bills
solar energy is used for ventilation purposes.
5. Power pump: solar power not just help in improving ventilation system at your
homes but with that it can also help in circulating water in any building. You can
connect power pump with solar power supply unit but you must run it on DC current
so that water circulate throughout your home.
6. Solar Lighting: these lights are also known as day lighting, and work with help of
solar power. These lights store natural energy of sun in day time and then convert this
energy into electricity to light up in night time. Use of this system is reducing load
form local power plants.
7. Solar Cars: it is an electrical vehicle which is recharged form solar energy or
sunlight. Solar panels are used on this car that absorb light and then convert it into
electrical energy. This electrical energy is stored in batteries used with the car, so that
in night time as well we can drive these vehicles.
8. Remote applications: Remote buildings are taking benefit of solar energy at vast
scale. Remote schools, community halls, and clinics can take solar panel and batteries
with them anywhere to produce and use electric power.

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 India Renewable
Energy
Development
Agency (IREDA)

Ministry of New Solar Energy

and Renewable Corporation of
Energy (MNRE) india (SECI)

Government
Bodies For
Promotion Of
Solar Energy

There are three government bodies established to promote solar energy in India. The
first is the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), which is the nodal unit for all
matters relating to RE. The second, India Renewable Energy Development Agency
(IREDA), is a public limited company established in 1987 to promote, develop and extend
financial assistance for RE and energy efficiency/conservation projects. Finally, Solar
Energy Centre (SEC) is a dedicated unit of the MNRE and the Government for the
development of solar energy technologies and promotion of its applications through
product development. Besides this, government has also rolled out various policies and
subsidies to promote this sector.

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 Ministry of New And Renewable Energy (MNRE)

Ministry of New and Renewable

Energy or MNRE is a ministry of
the Government of India. The ministry is
currently headed by Piyush Goyal,
a cabinet minister. The ministry was
established as the Ministry of Non-
Conventional Energy Sources in 1992. It
adopted its current name in October
2006.

The Ministry is mainly responsible for research and development, intellectual

property protection, and international cooperation, promotion, and coordination in renewable
energy sources such as wind power, small hydro, biogas, and solar power. The broad aim of
the ministry is to develop and deploy new and renewable energy for supplementing the
energy requirements of India.

The ministry is headquartered in Lodhi Road, New Delhi.According to the Ministry's

2012-2013 annual report, India has made significant advances in several renewable energy
sectors which include, solar energy, wind power, and hydroelectricity.

The mission of the Ministry is to bring in Energy Security; Increase the share of clean
power; increase Energy Availability and Access; improve Energy Affordability; and
maximise Energy Equity.

Major functional area or Allocation of Business of MNRE

 Commission for Additional Sources of Energy (CASE);

 Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA);

 Integrated Rural Energy Programme (IREP);

 Research and development of Biogas and programmes relating to Biogas units;

 Solar Energy including Solar Photovoltaic devices and their development, production

and applications;
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  Programme relating to improved chulhas and research and development thereof;

 All matters relating to small/mini/micro hydel projects of and below 25 MW capacities;

 Research and development of other non-conventional/renewable sources of energy and

programmes relating thereto;

 Tidal energy

 Geothermal Energy

 Biofuel:

Initiatives

1. Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM) - The objective of the mission is
to establish India as a global leader in solar energy, by creating the policy conditions
for its diffusion across the country as quickly as possible.
2. National Biogas and Manure Management Programme (NBMMP)
3. Solar Lantern Programme LALA
4. Solar thermal energyDemonstration Programme
5. Remote Village Lighting Programme
6. National Biomass Cookstoves Initiative (NBCI)
7. National Offshore Wind Energy Authority

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Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited
(IREDA)

Indian Renewable Energy

Development Agency Limited (IREDA) is a
Mini Ratna (Category – I) Government of
India Enterprise under the administrative
control of Ministry of New and Renewable
Energy (MNRE). IREDA is a Public Limited
Government Company established as a Non-
Banking Financial Institution in 1987
engaged in promoting, developing and
extending financial assistance for setting up
projects relating to new and renewable
sources of energy and energy
efficiency/conservation with the motto:
“ENERGY FOR EVER”

IREDA has been notified as a “Public Financial Institution” under section 4 ‘A’ of the
Companies Act, 1956 and registered as Non-Banking Financial Company (NFBC) with
Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

IREDA’s mission is “Be a pioneering, participant friendly and competitive institution

for financing and promoting self-sustaining investment in energy generation from Renewable
Sources, Energy Efficiency and Environmental Technologies for sustainable development.”

IREDA’s Motto is “Energy for Ever.”

The main objectives of IREDA are :

 To give financial support to specific projects and schemes for generating electricity and
/ or energy through new and renewable sources and conserving energy through energy
efficiency.
 To maintain its position as a leading organization to provide efficient and effective
financing in renewable energy and energy efficiency / conservation projects.

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  To increase IREDA`s share in the renewable energy sector by way of innovative
financing.
 Improvement in the efficiency of services provided to customers through continual
improvement of systems, processes and resources.
 To strive to be competitive institution through customer satisfaction.

QUALITY POLICY

IREDA is committed to maintain its position as a leading organization to provide innovative

financing in Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency/Conservation and Environmental
Technologies through efficient systems & processes for providing total satisfaction and
transparency to its customers.

IREDA shall strive for continual improvement in the quality of services to its customers
through effective quality management system.

QUALITY OBJECTIVES

 Drive towards total customer satisfaction.

 Continual up gradation of capability and improvement in the professional skills
of employees.
 Improvement in efficiency of services provided to customers.
 Continual improvement of systems, process and services.

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 Solar Energy Corporation of India Ltd. (SECI)

Solar Energy Corporation of India

Ltd. (SECI) is a CPSU under the
administrative control of the Ministry of
New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), set up
on 20th Sept, 2011 to facilitate the
implementation of JNNSM and achievement
of targets set therein. It is the only CPSU
dedicated to the solar energy sector. It was
originally incorporated as a section-25 (not
for-profit) company under the Companies
Act, 1956.

However, through a Government of India decision, the company has recently been
converted into a Section-3 company under the Companies Act, 2013. The mandate of the
company has also been broadened to cover the entire renewable energy domain.

In the present outlook of the RE sector, especially solar energy, SECI has a major role
to play in the sector’s development. The company is responsible for implementation of a
number of schemes of MNRE, major ones being the VGF schemes for large-scale grid-
connected projects under JNNSM, solar park scheme and grid-connected solar rooftop
scheme, alongwith a host of other specialised schemes such as defence scheme, canal-top
scheme, Indo-Pak border scheme etc. In addition, SECI has ventured into solar project
development on turnkey basis for several PSUs. The company also has a power-trading
license and is active in this domain through trading of solar power from projects set up under
the schemes being implemented by it.

Vision

To build ‘Green India’ through harnessing abundant solar radiation and to achieve energy
security for the country.

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Mission
 To become the leader in development of large scale solar installations, solar plants

and solar parks and to promote and commercialize the use of solar energy to reach
remotest corner of India.
 To become leader in exploring new technologies and their deployment to harness

solar energy.

Central Government Policies

and incentives to Solar
Power Sector

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Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM)
The Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (also known as the National
Solar Mission) is a major initiative of the Government of India and State
Governments to promote ecologically sustainable growth while addressing
India’s energy security challenges. It will also constitute a major contribution by India to
the global effort to meet the challenges of climate change. Named after Jawaharlal Nehru, the
Mission is one of the several initiatives that are part of National Action Plan on Climate
Change. The program was inaugurated by Former Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan
Singh on 11 January 2010 with a target of 20GW by 2022 which was later increased to 100
GW in 2015 Union budget of India. United States filed a case with WTO against India for
restricting the critical materials used to domestic content.

Goals
The objective of the National Solar Mission is to establish India as a global leader in solar
energy, by creating the policy conditions for its diffusion across the country as quickly as
possible. The immediate aim of the Mission is to focus on setting up an enabling environment
for solar technology penetration in the country both at a centralized and decentralized level.
The first phase (up to 2013) will focus on capturing of the low hanging options in solar
thermal; on promoting off-grid systems to serve populations without access to commercial
energy and modest capacity addition in grid-based systems. In the second phase, after taking
into account the experience of the initial years, capacity will be aggressively ramped up to
create conditions for up scaled and competitive solar energy penetration in the country.

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Timeline
The Mission under the aegis of Ministry of New and Renewable Energy will adopt a 3-
phase approach, spanning the remaining period of the 11th Plan and first year of the 12th Plan
(up to 2012-13) as Phase 1, the remaining 4 years of the 12th Plan (2013–17) as Phase 2 and
the 13th Plan (2017–22) as Phase 3. At the end of each plan, and mid-term during the 12th and
13th Plans, there will be an evaluation of progress, review of capacity and targets for subsequent
phases, based on emerging cost and technology trends, both domestic and global. The aim
would be to protect Government from subsidy exposure in case expected cost reduction does
not materialize or is more rapid than expected.

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Year wise target
To meet the scaled up target of 100,000 MW, MNRE has proposed to achieve it through
40,000 MW through Rooftop Solar Projects and 60,000 MW through Large and Medium Scale
solar projects.

Year-wise Targets (in MW)

Category 2015- 2016- 2017- 2018- 2019- 2020- 2021- Total

16 17 18 19 20 21 22

Rooftop Solar 200 4,800 5,000 6,000 7,000 8,000 9,000 40,000
Project

Ground Mounted 1,800 7,200 10,000 10,000 10,000 9,500 8,500 57,000
Solar Project

Total 2,000 12,000 15,000 16,000 17,000 17,500 17,500 97,000

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Policy Progress of JNNSM

After growing at a disappointing rate of less than 1 GW per year during the
last two years, India’s solar sector is staring at the possibility of growing
exponentially, or more specifically, reach 100 GW installed capacity in the next five
years (till 2019). The new government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is
drafting the plan to achieve the 100 GW capacity. As a first step, the Ministry for New
and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has already released the draft guidelines for
achieving a capacity of 20 GW through Solar Parks in various states across the
country.

Status of Phase 1 of the JNNSM

The Phase 1 of the Mission was implemented in 2 batches. In the first batch,
150 MW of PV (30 projects of 5 MW capacity each) and 470 MW (7 projects of
varying capacities) of Solar Thermal (CSP) projects were selected through a tariff
based reverse bidding process. The tariff range for the selected solar PV projects
was Rs. 10.95/kWh-Rs.12.76/kWh. For the CSP projects, the range was Rs.
10.49/kWh-Rs. 12.24/kWh. The average tariffs were Rs. 12.12/kWh for PV and Rs.
11.48/kWh for CSP projects.

Apart from this, 98.5 MW (78 projects) were allotted under the Rooftop PV and Small
Solar Power Generation Programme (RPSSGP) and another 84 MW (PV-54 MW
and CSP-30 MW) were selected under migration scheme.

In the second batch, 350 MW of solar PV projects were selected based on the
reverse bidding process, and the tariff range was Rs. 7.49/kWh-Rs.9.44/kWh, with
the average tariff being Rs. 8.77/kWh.

During the Phase 1 of the JNNSM, there was a Domestic Content Requirement
(DCR) for Crystalline Silicon Modules, which mandated the use of Indian made
modules for the Batch 1 SPV projects, and both cells and modules for the Batch 2
projects. All projects using Thin Film technology based PV modules were exempted
from the DCR.

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According to the MNRE, a total capacity of 568 MW has been commissioned so far
under Phase-1, excluding the projects under RPSSGP.

Status of Phase 2 of the JNNSM

The Phase 2 of the JNNSM spans a period of 5 years (2013-17), and the
original target for this Phase was 9,000 MW. This phase is also being implemented
in batches, and the allocation of 750 MW of projects under Batch 1 of this Phase was
completed in March 2014. The projects will be supported through a Viability Gap
Funding (VGF) mechanism, with the funds coming from the National Clean Energy
Fund (NCEF). Under the VGF mechanism, power would be purchased from
developers at a fixed tariff of Rs.5.45/ unit (Rs.4.95/unit in case benefit of
Accelerated Depreciation is availed) and VGF will be paid to the developers as per
their bids, up to a maximum of Rs.2.5 crore/MW).

In this batch, 50% of the total available capacity of 750 MW was reserved for
projects using Indian made modules and the remaining 375 MW projects did not
have the DCR. Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) with the successful bidders
were signed in March 2014, and the projects have 13 months from the date of
signing of the PPA to commission the projects.

Batch 2 of Phase 2

MNRE has proposed to add 15 GW of Solar PV Capacity during the Phase 2

of the Mission in 3 tranches till 2019. The planned allocation under the 3 tranches is
3 GW during 2014-2017, 5 GW during 2015-2018 and 7 GW during 2016-2019.
Many of these projects will be allocated in solar parks in various states highlighted at
the beginning of the article.

The way forward

As mentioned earlier, the government is proposing to drastically increase the

solar installation targets to 100 GW by 2019. This target is very ambitious
considering the fact that today, the total solar installed capacity in the country is just
2,765 MW (as of September, 30 – 2014). In order to achieve the ambitious goal, it is
hoped that the government will work together with the stakeholders in overcoming all
technical, manufacturing capacity, infrastructural, policy and financial challenges.

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Some of the specific initiatives for involving certain key stakeholders of the Ministry have
been highlighted below.

Research &
Development
(R&D)/

Technical
Specific institutions
State Nodal
and
Agencies Initiatives technology
providers

State
Governments

 Research & Development (R&D)/ technical institutions and technology providers

The Ministry has been supporting R&D for technology and manpower
development in renewable energy. The current emphasis is on reduction in cost and
increase in efficiency. For sustained development of this sector, efforts are being made
so that renewable energy is driven to a large extent by the market and the consumer.
With a view to achieving this goal, the Ministry has evolved a policy of supporting R&D
with close involvement of the industrial sector. This will bring about increased
interaction and close co-operation between the research and teaching institutions of
the country - which are reservoirs of knowledge and experience, and the Indian
Page | 38
 industry which has the requisite entrepreneurship and market-orientation. The broad
spectrum of new and renewable technologies provides a great opportunity for
innovation. Ministry is also developing Centres of Excellence.
 State Governments

There are several issues that require proactive action by States. Many States
have not announced clear-cut / conducive policies to encourage private sector
involvement in different renewable energy projects. It is noted that due importance is not
being given to renewable energy in many States and adequate budget provisions are not
available. In many States the process for allotment of sites and statutory clearances,
including land acquisition, forest clearance, irrigation clearance etc is extremely time
consuming. There are also inadequate power evacuation and transmission facility
especially for Wind power projects, matching with the development of the sector in the
State. The Ministry will ensure regular interaction with concerned State Departments,
Regulatory Authorities and Agencies to periodically address issues relating to State policy
& regulatory issues including appropriate enforcement of RPO regulations, statutory
clearances, land acquisition, power evacuation & transmission, for sector specific
renewable power projects. 49 The Ministry will also work closely with State Governments
for working out and introducing innovative business models for promotion of renewable
energy at the state level to move towards increasingly a market oriented mechanism.

 State Nodal Agencies

Since the actual implementation of the Ministry’s programmes is through
the State Nodal Agencies it is of vital importance that these agencies are adequately
strengthened in terms of manpower and skill set. There is need to encourage states to
strengthen the administrative set-up and get local self-government institutions like
Municipalities and Panchayats involved in planning and implementation process. The
need to gear up the SNAs for playing a much more proactive role for promotion of
renewable energy in their respective States in tune with the Ministry’s strategy for
growth of the sector cannot be undermined. Prima-facie it is felt that SNAs require
strengthening, especially in the area of capacity building and availability of technical
manpower for which the GOI should step up its budgetary support.

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Other Ministries of Government of India: Key to the successful implementation of the
Ministry’s plans is effective co-ordination with the other functional ministries. The main
ones among these are:

1. Ministry of Power: With grid integration of renewable and their mainstreaming,

close operations of the MoP and MNRE on renewable energy technologies is
essential. This has been successfully undertaken for the JNNSM guidelines, and will
need to be continued on an ongoing basis; Development of transmission systems
for renewable energy is also required. Utilities would need to fulfill renewable
energy purchase obligations.
2. Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas: Interaction is necessary for biofuel
blending as well as initiatives like Solar-Gas hybrids as also future pricing strategies
of fossil fuels including lesser subsidies for diesel, kerosene and cooking gas.
3. Ministry of Finance: Ministry has been interacting frequently with the Ministry of
Finance on matters related to subsidies, fiscal incentives and the like. With the
National Clean Energy Fund in place, and being 50 intended for deployment of
clean and renewable energy technologies, it will be important for the Ministry to
interact closely and act in concert with the Ministry of Finance to get more
resources as well as help in creation of financial instruments which will reduce
costs of RE projects, particularly solar. Capabilities of IREDA also need to be
strengthened.
4. Ministry of Environment & Forests for facilitating dedicated energy plantations,
use of pine needles, etc so that an important new area for biomass power can be
opened up. o Ministry of Urban Development: to promote regulations which,
would make mandatory installation of solar water heaters and construction of
energy efficient buildings
5. Ministry of Education, Department of Women & Child Development and Ministry
of Tribal Affairs can utilize efficient cook stoves
6. Other Ministries – which can facilitate large-scale off-grid applications such as solar
water heating, solar cooking, solar street lighting, solar airconditioning, kitchen
waste processing, green buildings and campuses in their establishments (Defence,
Home ,Railways, HRD- big institutions, schools, health- medical colleges, hospitals,
nursing homes, tourismhotels, resorts), etc.

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State Wise Policies
and Incentives to
Solar Power Sector

Page | 41
Maharashtra

Eligible producer
Land allotment 1. Land acquired for solar projects will be granted
deemed status of Non-agricultural land.
2. Solar projects having capacity up to 2 MW can be
given land 4 hectors as per availability and 50 %
discount shall be given on rental/ lease charges. All
such transactions will be governed as per
Maharashtra land acquisition act.

Operative period
Sale of power and tariffs
Wheeling
Banking
Power evacuation and
grid interference
Incentives 1. Government land if available requires for
manufacturing of solar modules/panels/etc. shall
also be given 50 % discount on lease/rental
charges.
2. Concessions shall be granted for these projects to
get NOC from pollution control board.
3. Solar project developers can sell electricity
generated from solar projects to distribution
companies /captive use/third-party sale/ REC.
4. Open Access shall be granted for interstate as well
as intrastate projects as per MERC regulations
5. Exemption from Supervision charges for
evacuation.
6. Projects can register themselves as industrial units.
7. Exemption from E-duty for captive power plants for
10 years from the date of commissioning.

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 8. Developers will be given the necessary support for
development solar projects, but there will separate
provisions for interstate power transfer.

..

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Tamil Nadu

Eligible producer
Land allotment
Operative period
Sale of power and tariffs
Wheeling The wheeling and banking charges for captive use/third party
Banking sale within the State will be as per the orders of the Tamil
Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission.

Power evacuation and

grid interference
Incentives  Appropriate tax incentives as per the Tamil Nadu
Industrial Policy.
 A solar manufacturing ecosystem will be created that
include solar research centres, test facilities, resource
assessment facilities, educational institutions, training
centres, etc.
 Exemption from payment of electricity tax to the extent
of 100% on electricity generated from Solar power
projects used for self-consumption/sale to utility will be
allowed for 5 years.
 Exemption from demand cut to the extent of 100% of
the installed capacity assigned for captive use purpose
will be allowed.

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Karnataka

Eligible producer  Grid connect utility projects:Any individual/ firm/society

/institution /registered company including public utilities
 Grid connect rooftop projects: All individual residential /
commercial/ institutional/ government building owners,
industrial units
 Off grid :Any individual
Land allotment
Operative period The policy will come into effect from 2014 and shall remain in
force until 2021 or till time any changes are made by the state
government.
Sale of power and tariffs
Wheeling Charges will be applicable as determined by KERC from time
Banking to time
Power evacuation and
grid interference
Incentives 1. Tax concessions such as entry tax stamp duty registration
charges shall be as per Karnataka industrial policy
2. Various concessions allowed by MNRE viz central excise
duty and custom duty to be allowed.

Rajasthan
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Eligible producer
Land allotment The government land would be allotted to a solar park
developer or project developer as per the provisions of
Rajasthan land revenue rules 2007. The setting up f solar
projects on private land will also be promoted.
Operative period The policy has come in effect from 8t October 2014 and shall
be applicable until new policy is formed.
Sale of power and tariffs
Wheeling
Banking Banking will be allowed as per RERC regulations and orders
Power evacuation and The transmission and distribution companies will have to ensure
grid interference availability of power evacuation network.
The solar power producer will have to pay the grid connectivity
charges as finalized by RERC.
Incentives 1. Incentives as per Rajasthan industrial policy
2. Availability of water for power generation
3. Clearance from Rajasthan state pollution control board
4. Projects of capacities more than 500 MV will be directly
placed before the state level empowered committee for
consideration.
5. Such projects will be eligible for benefits/concessions
available under rajasthan investment promotion scheme.

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Andhra Pradesh

Eligible producer All registered companies, Government entities, partnership

companies/ firms, individuals and all consumers of
APDiscom(s)
Land allotment Project developer to acquire the land required for the project.
However, in case of land owned by Revenue Department, the
land allotment shall be done as per the prevailing government
policy.
Operative period Applicable for a period of five (5) years and/ or shall remain in
force till such time a new policy is issued.
Solar Power Projects (SPP) that are commissioned during the
operative period shall be eligible for the incentives declared
under this policy, for a period of ten(10) years from the date of
commissioning - unless otherwise the period is specifically
mentioned for any incentive.
Sale of power and tariffs
Wheeling Transmission and Distribution charges shall be exempted for
wheeling of power generated from Solar Power Projects for
only captive use/third party sale within the State.
Banking Banking of 100% of energy shall be permitted for all Captive
and Open Access/ Scheduled Consumers during all 12 months
of the year. Banking charges shall be adjusted in kind @ 2% of
the energy delivered at the point of drawal. The banking year
shall be from April to March.

Power evacuation and The power generated from a Solar Power Project shall be
grid interference injected at an appropriate voltage at the sub-station and/or
interconnection point of the APTransco / Discom(s). The
Eligible Developer shall bear the entire cost of construction of
power evacuation facilities from the project upto the
interconnection point and/or upto APTransco / Discom(s)
substation.

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 Power Projects will be exempted from paying the Supervision
charges to APTransco/Discom(s) towards the internal
evacuation infrastructure within the project site and upto
interconnection point.
Incentives 1. Electricity duty shall be exempted for captive consumption,
sale to Discom(s) and third party sale provided the source of
power is from Solar Power Projects setup within the State.
2. Cross subsidy surcharge shall be exempted for third party
sale provided the source of power is from Solar Power
Projects setup within the State for a period of five (5) years
from the date of commissioning of the SPP
3. Distribution losses shall be exempted only for Solar Power
Projects injecting at 33 kV or below irrespective of voltage-
level of the delivery point within the Discom
4. Generation of electricity from Solar Power Projects shall be
treated as eligible industry under the schemes administered
by the Industries Department and incentives available to
industrial units under such schemes shall be available to the
solar power producers.
5. Deemed PPP status shall be provided for projects coming up
under category (A) as per para (3) of this policy.
6. Deemed Non-Agricultural (NA) status for the land where
Solar Power Projects will be accorded, on payment of
applicable statutory fees.
7. Solar PV power projects will be exempted from
obtaining any NOC/Consent for establishment under
pollution control laws from AP Pollution Control Board.

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Gujarat

Eligible Any company or body corporate or association or body of individuals, whether

producer incorporated or not, or artificial juridical person shall be eligible for setting up
of SPGs
Land The Solar Project Developer shall be responsible for obtaining the
allotment land for setting up and operating solar power project.
Operative
period
Sale of
power and
tariffs
Wheeling For residential and government under net metering projects and for industrial
and commercial under net metering wheeling charges are not applicable.
For other it is charged as applicable under OA regulation.
Banking
Power Grid Connectivity
evacuation  The respective
and grid evacuation facility shall be initially approved by CTU/ STU/ DisCom
interference depending on injection level after carrying out system studies.
 For start‐up,
stand‐by and auxiliary power requirement, the same shall be governed by
GERC regulations and orders.
 No parallel
operation charges shall be applicable to the SPG.
 Connectivity
charges to be paid to DisCom shall be INR 5,000/‐ per project for
capacities less than 100 kW. For capacities of 100 kW and above, normal
connectivity charges shall be applicable.
Evacuation Facilities
 Within Solar Park
Developer of Solar Project/ Solar Park shall establish dedicated line for
evacuation of power up to STU/ CTU sub station and install RTUs etc. at their
own cost. SPG shall be integrated to the grid by installing RTUs to enable real

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 time monitoring of the injection of power by SLDC.
 Outside Solar Park
To optimize costs, Common dedicated transmission line shall be encouraged
for cluster of adjoining Developers with appropriate metering at their
respective end of project as well as a common meter for such SPGs at the
receiving end at CTU Interface/ STU substation/ 11 kV system of DisCom.
Energy injection by each SPG at the receiving end shall be worked out on the
basis of meter reading of common meter appropriately apportioned as per the
respective meter reading at the sending end meter of that SPG by SLDC.
Incentives 1. The Government of Gujarat has launched the “Gujarat Industrial Policy
2015” and envisions to boost the renewable sector through its
provisions. This policy promotes the “Make in India” campaign and
provides for subsidy benefits, simplification of procedures,
strengthening single window system, etc.
2. The Government of Gujarat has also launched the “Electronics Policy
for the State of Gujarat (2014‐19)” which supports facilitation for
setting up semiconductor wafer facilities. It also extends benefits for
solar cell manufacturing, solar modules and panel manufacturing, solar
lanterns/ lamps manufacturing and all the systems and devices that come
under the purview of solar technology.
3. The Government of India has launched the Modified Special Incentive
Package Scheme (M‐SIPS) to provide incentives and attract investments
in electronic systems design and manufacturing industries. These
industries include manufacturing of polysilicon, ingots and wafers,
crystalline/ polycrystalline cells and modules, thin‐film modules,
transformers and allied electronics.
Madhya Pradesh

Eligible producer All Solar energy based power project Developers (Solar
PV/Solar thermal) and manufacturing units of equipments,
ancillaries related to Solar Power projects shall be eligible for
benefits under the Policy.

Only new plant and machinery shall be eligible for installation

Page | 50
 under the Policy.

Land allotment For setting up Solar Power Plant in Madhya Pradesh,maximum

land use permission for government land, if available, to the
Solar Power Producer shall be 3.0 Hectares per MW.

In case of land owned by RevenueDepartment or any other

State Government Department, the New & Renewable Energy
Department shall take possession of the land and subsequently
give permission for use of land to the concerned Developer
Operative period This Policy shall become operative from the date of its
notification in the Madhya Pradesh State Gazette.
Sale of power and tariffs Category I Projects: For the projects allotted under tariff based
competitivebidding route for sale to MP Discoms/ MP Power
Management Co Ltd., the Power Purchase Agreement will be
executed between MP Discoms / MP Power Management Co.
Ltd and successful bidders as per the provisions of
bid/qualification document on the tariff arrived by the process
of tariff-based bidding. However the rates shall not be more
than the rates specified by theMPERC.
Category II Projects:In case of third party sale/captive use/sale
to other states,the Power Purchase Agreement will be executed
between the Power Producer and the Procurer on mutually
agreed rates.
Category III Projects: In case of solar power projects
established under RECmechanism, the Power Purchase
Agreement as required, will be executed between solar power
producers and the Procurer as per the Regulations/Orders of
CERC and/or MPERC issued from time to time in this regard.
Category IV Projects:For projects under JNNSM, the Power
PurchaseAgreement will be executed between the solar power
producer and the Procurer (NVVN and/or MP Discoms/ MP
Power Management Co Ltd.) as per Guidelines under JNNSM.
Wheeling Facility of wheeling will be available to all solar powerprojects

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 through MPPTCL/ MP Discoms, as case may be, as per
wheeling charges specified by MPERC. For above wheeling
charges, GoMP will provide a grant of four percent (4%) in
terms of energy injected and the balance, if any, shall be borne
by the project developer.

Banking Banking of 100% of energy in every financial year shall be

permitted subject to the following conditions –

The figures of banked energy during the Financial Year shall be

subject to verification by the officials of the concerned State
Distribution Company/ State Power Trading Company. The
Developer will be required to pay two percent (2%) of the
banked energy towards banking charges to the concerned State
Distribution Company/ State Power Trading Company.

The return of banked energy shall be based on Regulations

issued by MPERC from time to time.

The balance energy, if any, at the end of a Financial Year after

return of banked energy shall be purchased by the concerned
State Distribution Company/ State Power Trading Company in
accordance with the rules/ directions of MPERC.
Power evacuation and The developer shall be responsible for laying of power
grid interference evacuation line from generating station to the nearest substation
or interconnection point. Any dispensation in this regard that
may be made by the MPERC shall be final.
The Developer shall be responsible for payment of all wheeling
and transmission charges to the MPPTCL/respective
Distribution Company in case of sale of power to Third Party
Consumers/ Distribution Licensee/ Power Management Co. Ltd
utilizing their network the payment shall be subject to the
regulations of MPERC.

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Incentives 1. In case the Developerpurchases private land for the
project, then they will be eligible for an exemption of
50% on stamp duty.
2. All Solar power projects (includingcaptive units) will be
eligible for exemption from payment of electricity duty
and cess for a period of 10 years from the date of
commissioning of the project.
3. The Solar projects implemented under this Solar Policy
willhave the status of industry and will be eligible for all
benefits under Industrial Promotion Policy (or
subsequent amendments from time to time). In case of
any inconsistency between the Madhya Pradesh
Industrial Promotion Policy and Solar policy, the
provisions under the new Solar Policy shall prevail.
4. The equipments purchased for installation ofSolar power
plants under the policy shall be exempted from VAT and
entry tax.
5. CDM benefits to the solar power project
Developers/Investorsshall be as per the provisions
specified by MPERC.

RENEWABLE ENERGY CERTIFICATES:

The energy which is produced from the sources that are naturally replenished like sun,
wind, bio gas and biomass among other sources, is called Renewable energy. The Renewable
Page | 53
Energy Certificate is a trading market instrument which validates that the holder of the
certificate has generated certain amount of electricity from the renewable source. One
Renewable certificate is equivalent to 1 MWhr of electricity produced from the renewable
energy. The generator receives the REC once s/he has fed the electricity into the grid.

Actually, the cost of electricity produced from the renewable energy source is divided
into two components:

 The component of electricity which is equivalent to the cost of electricity produced

from the conventional source
 The environmental attribute (The REC is associated with the second component that
is the environmental attribute)

Cost of electricity
from the
conventional
source

Cost of
electricity
produced from
the renewable
energy

The
environmental
attribute

The main motive of REC is to promote the use of renewable energy and support the
Renewable Purchase Obligations (RPO)

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What is RPO?

The Renewable Repurchase Obligation (RPO) is the minimum percentage of the total
electricity that the power distribution companies either purchase from renewable energy
sources or purchase equivalent RECs. The RPO percentage for the states is determined by
State Electricity Regulatory Commission in consensus with Central Electricity Regulatory
Commission.

Why REC Mechanism is needed?

India, because of its large geographical area and diverse climate, the renewable
energy potential is not uniformly distributed. Some of its states have high potential for the
renewable energy while others have less. This non-uniformity results in uneven unit cost of
production of electricity from renewable source. The states which are rich in renewable
source like the state Rajasthan is having abundance of solar energy, have lower cost of
production while lesser renewable energy rich state will be having higher cost of production.
Also, the unit cost of production of electricity is higher than from the conventional sources.
Therefore, in order to address this mismatch and to motivate the RE generators, the REC
mechanism is introduced which one hand promotes & facilitates the generation of electricity
in the states having higher potential for renewable energy and on the other hand encourages
the distribution companies to fulfill their obligations by purchasing RECs from the RE
generators.

The revenue for the RE generator under REC scheme is as follows:

 Income of RE generator from the sale of the electricity component through feeding
into the grid
 Income from the sale of the environmental component, REC, through power
exchanges like IEXand PXIL

Salient Features of the REC Framework

 There will be a central level agency to be designated by the Central

Commission for registration of RE generators participating in the scheme.
 The RE generators will have two options - either to sell the renewable energy
at preferential tariff fixed by the concerned Electricity Regulatory Commission

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 or to sell the electricity generation and environmental attributes associated
with RE generation separately.
 On choosing the second option, the environmental attributes can be
exchanged in the form of REC. Price of electricity component would be
equivalent to weighted average power purchase cost of the distribution
company including short-term power purchase but excluding renewable power
purchase cost.
 The Central Agency will issue the REC to RE generators.
 The value of REC will be equivalent to 1 MWh of electricity injected into the
grid from renewable energy sources.
 The REC will be exchanged only in the Power Exchanges approved by CERC
within the band of a floor price and a forbearance (ceiling) price to be
determined by CERC from time to time.
 The distribution companies, Open Access consumer, Captive Power Plants
(CPPs) will have option of purchasing the REC to meet their Renewable
Purchase Obligations (RPO). Pertinently, RPO is the obligation mandated by
the State Electricity Regulatory Commission (SERC) under the Act, to
purchase minimum level of renewable energy out of the total consumption in
the area of a distribution licensee.
 There will also be compliance auditors to ensure compliance of the
requirement of the REC by the participants of the scheme.

Eligibility

The RE generators using only grid connected RE technology (so that the electricity can be
fed into the grid), which is approved under MNRE, are eligible under this mechanism. The
REC once issued remains valid for Seven Hundred and Thirty Days from the date of
issuance.

In order to participate in the REC mechanism, the eligible RE generators have to get the
accreditation with the state agency and must be registered with the central agency. The RE
generators already having PPA on the preferential tariff are not eligible to participate in the
mechanism.

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Types of RECs:

 Solar REC: The solar RECs are issued to the generators who produce electricity
from the solar energy
 Non-Solar REC: It is issued to those generators who produce electricity from
renewable energy other than solar energy

The Trading and Pricing of RECs

The RECs can be traded as a commodity in the open market through two power exchanges
like IEX and PXIL. The RECs are traded within Minimum price (Floor Price) and the
Maximum price (Forbearance Price) which is determined and set by the Central Electricity
Regulatory Commission (CERC).

The Floor Price and the Forbearance Price determined by CERC which is valid up to FY
2016-17 are as follows:

Particulars Non-solar REC(Rs./MWhr) Solar REC (Rs./MWhr)

Floor Price 1500 9300

Forbearance Price 3300 13400

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Top 10 solar companies in india 2021
Tata BP Solar India Ltd

Tata BP Solar India Ltd is a well known solar energy and products manufacturing company
that was started in 1989. company has head office in Bangalore and has talented pool of
professionals that has in-depth knowledge of product development, Company is ISO 9001
and ISO 14001 certified company that has 9 regional offices and 4 manufacturing units. All
the manufacturing units are equipped with world class facilities and use innovative
technology in product development.
Corporate office – Bangalore, Karnataka
Establishment – 1989
Business – Solar Energy and Solar Products
Website – tatapowersolar.com

Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd

Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd- Electronics Division is a prominent solar product
manufacturing company that started in 1964 and has head office in Bangalore. Company has
research and development unit that works on innovative technology and new cost effective
products methodology.
Corporate office – Bangalore, Karnataka
Establishment – 1964
Business – Electrical & Electronics
Website – www.bheledn.com

Bharat Electronics Ltd

Bharat Electronics Ltd is a Bangalore based solar and electronic products manufacturing
company that was started in 1954. Company is owned and managed by Government of India
and awarded with Navratna status from Government of India.
Corporate office – Bangalore, Karnataka
Establishment – 1954
Business – Electronics and Solar Energy
Website – www.bel-india.com
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Microsol Power P Ltd
Microsol Power P Ltd has head office in Hyderabad and established in 2000. it
manufactures solar module and cells producer.
Corporate office – Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh
Establishment – 2000
Business – Solar Energy
Website – www.microsolpower.com

Central Electronics Ltd

Central Electronics Ltd is another prominent Solar Energy and solar panels manufacturing
company that was started in 1974. It manufactures high quality Solar-Photovoltaic (SPV)
Cells, Modules and sells products in Indian and global market.
Corporate office – New Delhi
Establishment – 1974
Business – Solar Energy and solar panels
Website – www.celindia.co.in

NEPC India Ltd

NEPC India Ltd is a Chennai based company that was started in 1984. Company is ISO
9002 certified company and manufactures solar systems for flat roof, ground mount.
Corporate office – Chennai, Tamil Nadu
Establishment – 1984
Website – www.nepcindia.com

Kotak Urja
Kotak Urja is a Bangalore based company that was started in 1997. Company is counted
among top 10 solar panel manufacturers in India and has excellent team of professional that
works for the success of the company.
Corporate office – Bangalore, Karnataka
Establishment – 1997
Website – www.kotakurja.com
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Ammini
Ammini is a solar products manufacturing company that has head office in Kerala. It was
started in 1993 and is a leading producer of solar products. Company has huge product range
that includes Solar PV Module Outdoor Lighting- Solar, Indoor Lighting- Solar, Indoor
Lighting- Mains, Outdoor Lighting- Mains, BOS for Solar PV Systems, Solar Power
Products. The solar product manufacturing unit of company started in 2002 and within 10
years has achieved good market share of solar products. To start career in solar product
manufacturing company Ammini is one the best company to work with.
Corporate office – Trivandrum, Kerala
Establishment – 1993
Website – www.ammini.com

XL Energy Limited
XL Energy Limited was started in the year 1985 and has become a leading solar panel
manufacturing company of India. It has head office in Hyderabad and believes in using
innovative technology, cost effective business solutions to produce high quality products.
Corporate office – Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh
Establishment – 1985
Website – www.xlenergy.co

Moser Baer Photovoltaic Ltd

Moser Baer Photovoltaic Ltd is a prominent Optical storage and Solar products
manufacturing company that was started in 1983. company has head office in New Delhi and
has more than 7000 employees. Company manufactures solar PV modules and Solar EPC
Services manufactures
Corporate office – New Delhi
Establishment – 1983
Website – www.moserbaersolar.com

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 Conclusion
The Renewable energy certificates are traded to promote the use of renewable sources and to
accelerate & fulfil the process of RPO obligations of power distribution companies. The REC
mechanism motivates the setting up of RE power generation facilities in areas having higher
potential of renewable sources and creating equivalent RECs which can be traded in the open
market and can be bought by the distribution companies to fulfil their Renewable Purchase
obligations.

The wide participation in REC market is the key to cost reduction in Renewable Energy projects and
growth of renewable energy market in India.

Future Outlook
Solar Energy possesses tremendous potential in bridging India’s energy demand-
supply gap in the future. There are various challenges for this industry, including
lowering cost of production, increasing R&D, consumer awareness and financing
infrastructure. It is important to overcome these challenges for fast growth and mass
adoption of the technology. Some of the immediate actions to enable growth are
efficient implementation of renewable energy certificates, usage of carbon trading as a
source of revenue, immediate implementation of grid powered energy in regions of
Rajasthan and Gujarat, development of off-grid usage in various applications such as
cellular towers and encouraging localized mini grids in areas that lack connectivity
today. If these initiative work as planned, it is only a matter before India becomes one
of the world leaders in Solar Energy.
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