Developers have experienced curtailment of solar power in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, according to India’s Solar Power Developers Association (APDA).
Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) is expected to install just 250-300MW of capacity from its 500MW rooftop tender, according to the latest forecasts from consultancy firm Bridge to India.
The State Bank of India (SBI) has signed agreements with the World Bank for a US$625 million facility specifically to support India’s grid-connected rooftop solar programme.
The Delhi government approved its first solar policy this month with a particular focus on the rooftop segment. Jyoti Gulia, senior manager, market intelligence, at consultancy firm Bridge to India, explains how the policy brings some innovative firsts to India especially in net metering.
Wind power developers in India have been facing delayed payments from distribution companies of up to eight months at a time in various states, but solar developers have experienced only negligible delays in a couple of states, according to industry analysts.
The eastern Indian state of Jharkhand has awarded letters of intent (LOIs) to the winners of projects of more than 25MW capacity each from its 1.2GW solar PV auction, in what was seen as a positive step for developers.
Grid curtailment of solar power is already affecting Germany and China despite billions being spent on grid projects. With a target of 100GW, India is hoping to get 8% of its power requirements from solar PV by 2022, which is a higher penetration than both Germany and China today. Jasmeet Khurana, associate director, consulting, Bridge to India, investigates the potential for future curtailment of solar power in India and its consequences while identifying which states might be most affected.
India’s latest 400MW solar auction saw limited competition compared to recent tenders with just six bidders for the PV capacity in an Andhra Pradesh solar park.
The share of renewables, excluding hydropower, in India’s energy mix has reached 5.7% as of February this year, up from 4.97% in 2012/13, according to data released by the Central Electricity Authority.
