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<p>Chandrasekhar Bawankule, Maharashtra energy minister, has requested the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (<a href="https://www.merc.gov.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">MERC</a>), to discard the proposed draft regulations on rolling back net-metering in the state and continue with the previous regulations until the state’s target of 4.7 GW of renewable energy installations is achieved.</p>
<p>The draft regulations state that the state of Maharashtra could go back to gross metering, thus rolling back net metering for all segments except residential.</p>
<p>According to the minister, the draft regulations will undermine the progress of Maharashtra and discourage the use of solar energy, and “costly electricity” will increase the prices of all products.</p>
<p>In a letter written to the chairman of the MERC, Bawankule has mentioned that the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (<a href="https://msme.gov.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">MSME</a>),  general public, industries, and institutes as well as government bodies, have apprised him about the “negative effects” of the proposed draft regulations “which will undermine the progress of Maharashtra”.</p>
<p>Expressing his concern over the regulations, Bawankule  said, “Maharashtra will not be able to achieve its solar mission targets; people will be discouraged to use renewable energy producing systems for their captive purpose; discouraged to shift to electric vehicles; large power sensitive, and mass employment generating industries will shift to neighboring states which have conducive renewable energy policy causing mass unemployment in the state.”</p>
<p>According to him, the proposed regulations will also lead to an increase in the state’s carbon footprints “by being more dependent on fuels…”</p>
<p>Recently, Mercom had reported that the MERC’s draft regulations <a href="https://mercomindia.com/maharashtra-net-metering-solar-systems-except-residential/">state</a>d that all categories other than the residential category might set up the renewable energy generating system “only under the net billing arrangement.”</p>
<p>Under the “Net Billing Arrangement,” the rooftop solar installer will be purchasing power at a higher cost but selling electricity at a lower price to the distribution company (DISCOM).</p>
<p>Net metering was <a href="https://mercomindia.com/net-metering-drag-rooftop-solar-growth/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">introduced</a> in India as a measure to make distributed renewable energy more accessible and economical for electricity consumers across the country.</p>
<p>Image credit: BELECTRIC</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/anjana/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Anjana Parikh</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><p><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Anjana2.png" width="112" height="121" />Anjana is a news editor at Mercom India. Before joining Mercom, she held roles of senior editor, district correspondent, and sub-editor for The Times of India, Biospectrum and The Sunday Guardian. Before that, she worked at the Deccan Herald and the Asianlite as chief sub-editor and news editor. She has also contributed to The Quint, Hindustan Times, The New Indian Express, Reader’s Digest (UK edition), IndiaSe (Singapore-based magazine) and Asiaville. Anjana holds a Master’s degree in Geography from North Bengal University, and a diploma in mass communication and journalism from Guru Ghasidas University, Bhopal.</p>
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Maharashtra Minister Requests Regulator to Discard Draft Regulations on Net Metering

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