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Daily News Wrap-Up: APTEL Criticizes MERC for Denying Petitioner Relief

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					</table><a href="https://mercomindia.com/msmes-solar-savings-power-bills-cover-emi-cost-interview/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Small businesses are open to adopting rooftop solar if loan repayment is not an additional burden and is equal to their savings on electricity bills. Entities in the commercial and industrial</a> segment are increasingly moving towards renewable energy options, including rooftop solar, given the immense benefits they bring in terms of cost savings and reputation as sustainable companies. Vikas Agarwal, the co-founder of non-banking financial company Credit Fair, said in an interview with Mercom India that there is an uptick in rooftop installations in the residential segment after the Union government launched a national portal for rooftop solar to submit applications.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/sterlite-ists-project-evacuate-20-gw-renewables-rajasthan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sterlite Power has bagged an interstate transmission system project for the evacuation of 20 GW of power from renewable energy zones in Rajasthan under Phase III, Part-G.</a> The company participated in tariff-based competitive bidding and was awarded the letter of intent by PFC Consulting, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Power Finance Corporation, to build the project on a build, own, operate, and transfer basis for 35 years. The project comprises the construction of a 765 kV transmission corridor which will be laid across a 350 km stretch from Fatehgarh III to Beawar in the Ajmer district.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/gujarat-bids-500-mw-wind-power-greenshoe-option/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam (GUVNL) has invited bids to procure power from 500 MW of grid-connected wind projects (Phase V) with a greenshoe option</a> of an additional capacity of up to 500 MW. The last day to submit the bids online is April 11, 2023. Bids will be opened on April 17. GUVNL will enter into a PPA with successful bidders for 25 years from the scheduled commercial operation date of the project or the date of full commissioning of the project, whichever is earlier.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/green-hydrogen-india-save-%e2%82%b91-trillion-fuel-imports-2030/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Union Minister of Renewable Energy and Power R. K. Singh informed the Rajya Sabha that the government aims to reduce a total of ₹1 trillion (~$12 billion) worth of fossil fuel imports</a> by 2030, following the targets set under the National Green Hydrogen mission. The minister said nearly 50 million metric tons of carbon emissions are likely to be mitigated through the production and use of green hydrogen.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/europe-plans-clean-energy-raw-materials-access/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The European Union has unveiled two key initiatives to make the transition to clean energy and ensure it has access to critical raw materials to make the switch.</a> The measures are expected to enable the bloc to counter the competition from the United States and China on the clean energy front. The first of these initiatives announced by European Commission President von der Leyen as part of the Green Deal Industrial Plan is the proposed Net-Zero Industry Act that promotes the scaling up of clean technology manufacturing.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/researchers-show-tandem-perovskite-solar-cell/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Italy-based renewable energy company Enel Green Power, researchers at the National Solar Energy Institute, and the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission</a> claimed to have achieved a power conversion efficiency of 26.5% for a 2-terminal tandem perovskite solar cell. The improved efficiency in the collaborative research was obtained for a PIN architecture cell in the device with an active area of 9 cm² and an open-circuit voltage of over 1,880 Mv, with shading correction.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/researchers-perovskite-solar-cells-saves-input-energy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Researchers at Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin have found that solar cells made of metal halide perovskites achieve high efficiencies and can be produced from liquid inks</a> with little energy input. Metal halide perovskites are a particularly inexpensive and promising material class for next-generation solar modules. Perovskite solar cells can be fabricated using coating processes that use liquid inks made from precursor materials and various solvents. After the coating, the solvents evaporate, and the perovskites crystallize into a homogeneous layer.

Daily News Wrap-Up: Cost Savings Help MSMEs Move Toward Rooftop Solar

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					</table>The European Union has unveiled two key initiatives to make the transition to clean energy and ensure it has access to critical raw materials to make the switch. The measures are expected to enable the bloc to counter the competition from the United States and China on the clean energy front.
The first of these initiatives announced by <a href="https://commission.europa.eu/index_en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">European Commission</a> President von der Leyen as part of the <a href="https://mercomindia.com/eu-e250-billion-green-industrial-plan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Green Deal Industrial Plan</a> is the proposed Net-Zero Industry Act that promotes the scaling up of clean technology manufacturing.
The EU hopes the legislation will strengthen the competitiveness of net-zero technologies manufacturing and create better conditions to set up net-zero projects in Europe and attract investments.
The Act aims to ensure that the EU&#8217;s overall strategic net-zero technologies manufacturing capacity reaches at least 40% of its deployment needs by 2030.
The Net-Zero Industry Act addresses technologies that will significantly contribute to decarbonization. These include solar photovoltaic and solar thermal, onshore wind and offshore renewable energy, batteries and storage, heat pumps and geothermal energy, electrolyzers and fuel cells, biogas/biomethane, carbon capture, utilization and storage, and grid technologies.
To further support the uptake of renewable hydrogen within the EU and imports from international partners, the Commission is also presenting its ideas on the design and functions of the European Hydrogen Bank.
Critical Raw Materials Act
The second initiative is the European Critical Raw Materials Act proposal, which identifies a list of strategic raw materials crucial to Europe&#8217;s green ambitions. The regulation sets the following benchmarks for domestic capacities along the strategic raw materials supply chain and to diversify EU supply by 2030:
<ul>
<li>At least 10% of the EU&#8217;s annual consumption for extraction</li>
<li>At least 40% of the EU&#8217;s annual consumption for processing</li>
<li>At least 15% of the EU&#8217;s annual consumption for recycling</li>
<li>Not more than 65% of the Union&#8217;s annual consumption of each strategic raw material at any relevant stage of processing from a single third country</li>
</ul>
The Act will simplify permitting procedures for critical raw materials projects in the EU. Selected strategic projects will benefit from access to finance and shorter permitting timeframes (24 months for extraction permits and 12 months for processing and recycling permits).
Both pieces of legislation need to be discussed and agreed upon by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union before their adoption and entry into force.
European Commission President von der Leyen said: “We need a regulatory environment that allows us to scale up the clean energy transition quickly. The Net-Zero Industry Act will do just that. It will create the best conditions for those sectors that are crucial for us to reach net-zero by 2050: technologies like wind turbines, heat pumps, solar panels, renewable hydrogen, as well as CO2 storage. Demand is growing in Europe and globally, and we are acting now to ensure we can meet more of this demand with European supply.&#8221;
Recently, the Commission also <a href="https://mercomindia.com/eu-proposes-reforms-non-fossil-power/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">proposed</a> a major reform of the EU’s electricity market design to accelerate the adoption of renewable energy and phase out gas. The reform measures aim to incentivize longer-term contracts with non-fossil power production and bring more clean, flexible solutions such as demand response and storage.

Europe Unveils Plans for Clean Energy Tech, Raw Materials Access

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					</table>Munich-based chemical conglomerate <a href="https://www.wacker.com/cms/en-us/home/home.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wacker Chemie AG</a>’s third quarter (Q3) net income came in at €259 million (~$258.5 million), down 2.2% year-over-year (YoY) due to higher prices for energy and raw materials.
However, the company’s sales rose to €2.13 billion (~$2.12 billion), a jump of 29% YoY on the back of higher selling prices even though the volumes were lower than last year. Further, sales also benefited from positive exchange-rate effects due to the stronger US dollar.
The company’s revenue from the polysilicon business surged 51% YoY to €619 million (~$619.2 million) on strong demand and prices.
The company said that the main driver of this increase was significantly higher average prices for solar-grade silicon, but slightly higher volumes YoY also contributed to the sales trend. The company said that prices for semiconductor-grade silicon rose YoY while the share of this product in the total sales volume grew further.
Wacker raised the full-year (2022) sales and Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA) outlook for the polysilicon business to €2.2 billion (~$2.205 billion) and €850 million (~$852.1 million) respectively from €2.1 billion (~$2.1 billion) and €700-850 million (~$701.5-851.8 million) previously.
The company said that continuing high polysilicon prices were a further reason for an updated earnings forecast. Wacker said it expected EBITDA to be between €2.1 billion and €2.3 billion (~$2 and 2.2 billion) compared with the previous guidance of €1.8 billion-€2.3 billion (~$1.804-2.305 billion).
The company expects full-year sales to range from €8 billion to €8.5 billion (~$7.9-8.4 billion).
“Our strategic focus on specialty chemical products with high value-added for our customers, on highest-quality polysilicon for semiconductors and solar applications, and on the active expansion of our biotechnological activities contributes substantially to strengthening Wacker’s resilience and ensuring the company remains robust,” CEO Christian Hartel said.
The company’s Q3 EBITDA from polysilicon sales totaled €191 million (~$190.9 million) in Q3, down YoY by 5% owing to significantly higher prices for raw materials and energy costs clubbed with production slowdown in China.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Wacker-1.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-44194 size-full" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Wacker-1.png" alt="Wacker 1" width="1550" height="442" srcset="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Wacker-1.png 1550w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Wacker-1-300x86.png 300w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Wacker-1-768x219.png 768w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Wacker-1-1536x438.png 1536w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Wacker-1-650x185.png 650w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Wacker-1-624x178.png 624w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Wacker-1-600x171.png 600w" sizes="(max-width: 1550px) 100vw, 1550px" /></a>
Region-wise, the group’s sales in Q3 rose YoY by 46% in the U.S., generating revenue of €346.7 million (~$346.5 million) due in part to exchange-rate effects.
In Asia, Wacker’s sales grew YoY by 37% to €965.8 million (~$965.3 million) and 12% to €714.5 million (~$714.2 million) in Europe.
Wacker’s EBITDA for the period improved YoY by 2% to €457 million (~$456.8 million).
The company projects that increased logistics and raw materials costs are likely to impact the EBITDA by around €1.3-€1.4 billion (~$1.2-1.3 billion).
Wacker had <a href="https://mercomindia.com/wacker-polysilicon-sales-doubles-2021-e1-53-million/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> a two-fold increase or a 100% YoY growth in its polysilicon sales at €1.53 billion (~$1.71 million) in 2021.
The company <a href="https://mercomindia.com/wacker-groups-polysilicon-earnings-up-q1-2022/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">posted</a> a YoY increase of 76% in revenue from polysilicon sales at €525 million (~$551.30 million) for the first quarter of 2022.

Wacker Group’s Polysilicon Segment Sales in Q3 Grew By 51% YoY

The <a href="https://dor.gov.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ministry of Finance (Department of Revenue)</a> has imposed a duty of 15% on the export of steel. The move is likely to bring down the prices of solar mounting structures, providing some relief to mounting structure manufacturers and solar project developers.
A 15% duty has been imposed on flat-rolled products of steel of a width of 600 mm or more, other bars and rods of stainless steel, and bars and rods hot rolled into irregularly wound coils of other alloy steel.
The government has decided not to impose any duty on the import of raw materials used for the production of steel, like pulverized coal, coking coal, and ferronickel.
Steel prices have been on an upward trend since last year.
JSW and Tata Steel dominate the Indian market. The export of steel by these companies adds to the demand-supply gap in the domestic market.
Harshal Akhouri, Co-founder of Strolar Mounting Systems, reacted to the government move by saying, “There is a considerable gap between domestic demand and supply. A 15% duty on steel export is a good step. With the duty in place, Indian products will not be competitive enough in the international market.”
He also said that with no duties for raw materials, the price of coking coal is expected to decrease by 5%. He expected that the prices of module mounting structures would come down by nearly 10%.
“Once the demand picks up, prices will stabilize, and the developers will get a clearer picture of project development. For utility-scale projects, steel module mounting structures are used, whereas, for rooftop projects, aluminum is used,” Akhouri added.
In the calendar year (CY) 2021, <a href="http://snscorporation.co.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SNS Corporation</a>, <a href="https://www.strolar.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Strolar</a>, and <a href="http://www.ishkon.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ISHKON Industries</a> were the top three module mounting structure <a href="https://mercomindia.com/sns-strolar-ishkon-solar-mounting-suppliers-2021/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suppliers</a> in the Indian solar market.
A top executive from another module mounting structure manufacturer said, “I think steel producers were exporting large quantities and creating a vacuum in India. Now, things will improve. With steel prices expected to decrease, developers and independent power producers will be happy. The price reduction could be up to 10%.”
The executive, however, felt that the prices would come down only in July or August.
Last September, the Directorate General of Trade Remedies <a href="https://mercomindia.com/anti-dumping-duty-likely-on-aluminum-imports/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recommended</a> anti-dumping duty on certain flat-rolled aluminum products imported from China to offset the injury caused due to dumping in the Indian market. Flat-rolled aluminum is used in manufacturing solar module mounting structures for rooftop solar projects.
Subscribe to Mercom’s real-time <a href="https://mercomindia.com/product/mercoms-renewable-energy-regulatory-updates/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Regulatory Updates</a> to ensure you don’t miss any critical updates from the renewable industry.

Duty on Export of Steel Expected to Bring Down Cost of  Solar Module Mounting Structures

Solar module manufacturers believe that prices of Chinese modules are expected to stay high until the first quarter (Q1) of the calendar year (CY) 2022. Modules prices have gone up from $0.25/W in the first quarter (Q1) of 2021 to over $0.30/W to date.
According to the Asia Europe Clean Energy Advisory (<a href="http://www.aecea.com.de/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AECEA</a>), raw materials prices have increased, and as a result, prices for polysilicon, EVA, backsheets, aluminum framers, and solar glass have also increased. Consequently, prices for solar panels have reached a level not seen in the past 12-18 months.
AECEA said that the polysilicon prices have continuously declined since early 2018 and reached an all-time low level of RMB 56 (~$8.71)/kg in April-May 2020. However, the prices have continuously increased since April 2020, and the latest transaction price was approximately 270 renminbi (RMB) (~$42)/kg.
Bharat Makkapati, Regional Sales Director at <a href="https://www.znshinesolar.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ZnShine Solar</a>, said, “The prices of solar modules are expected to stay on the higher side until Q1 2022. It will stay in the range of $0.28/W to $0.32/W in the upcoming two quarters due to shortage of raw materials.”
“The polysilicon price is at an all-time high of 270 RMB (~$42)/kg. Production has been cut down in China due to the power crisis in the country. This will impact module prices. In addition, there is a shortage of other raw materials, and higher metal prices also affect the module prices. Modules account for 55-60% of capital expenditure (CAPEX) of solar projects in India. Therefore, the increase in module prices is expected to increase the overall CAPEX of solar projects by around 18-20%,” Makkapati added.
In addition, China’s Yunnan provincial government has released instructions to reduce silicon production output by 90% from September to December 2021. The province’s industrial silicon output accounted for 20% of China’s total domestic supply. Therefore, module prices could stay at an all-time high level during the next two quarters.
Echoing similar thoughts, a senior executive of a solar module manufacturing company said the prices of solar modules increased around 20% in the past two quarters. There is a shortage of raw materials due to the power crisis in China, and it increased the prices of raw materials like silicon and solar glass. Therefore, module prices rose in the past quarters and are expected to rise until Q1 2022.
“The increased module prices will affect solar projects in India. Solar projects will be unviable at the tariffs contracted in power purchase agreements as the CAPEX of projects will increase by 18-20%,” he added.
Speaking to Mercom, another module manufacturer said that the prices will rise for another five to six months, and this trend will persist until Q1 2022. “The situation is going to get worse before it improves, and there are multiple reasons for it. One of the reasons is the shortage of silicon which has driven polysilicon prices to a new annual high. The power crisis in China and a host of other issues are responsible for the increase in prices. The price has gone up to $35/kg for silicon right now, and it will only go up in the near future,” he noted.
Given the current scenario, polysilicon prices are expected to stay high in the near term, with limited additional supply coming online in the next couple of months and due to a massive shift of demand from 2021 into 2022.
Mercom is hosting a virtual conference, “<a href="https://mercomindia.com/solarforum2021/overview/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mercom India solar Forum 2021</a>,” on October 21. The event also includes sessions on &#8216;A Look at India’s Solar Supply Chain and Sourcing Strategies,&#8217; and &#8216;Moving Towards a Domestic Manufacturing Base With Sustainable Demand&#8217; to discuss the changing scenario in solar component manufacturing and supply chain.
The virtual event is free to attend. To register, you can click <a href="https://mercomindia.com/solarforum2021/register/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.

Solar Module Prices Could Remain High Until Q1 2022

Rajasthan Electronics and Instruments Limited (<a href="http://www.reiljp.com/default.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener">REIL</a>), a joint venture between the Government of India and the Government of Rajasthan, has invited bids for the supply of 36,000 raw material kits for the production of solar modules of 330 W output for a total capacity of 12 MW.
The last date to submit bids online is September 6, 2021. Bids will be opened on September 7.
The minimum lot size should be 3,000 sets for 1 MW at an interval of 15 days. The list of items to be included in the kits are specified in the table below.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/REIl-updated.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-28539 size-full" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/REIl-updated.png" alt="REIL Updated" width="561" height="292" srcset="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/REIl-updated.png 561w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/REIl-updated-300x156.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 561px) 100vw, 561px" /></a>
A test report and quality certificate should accompany all consignments from the manufacturer, indicating compliance with the required specifications.
In case of delays in supplies or defective supplies, or non-fulfillment of any other conditions given in the purchase order, REIL may cancel the purchase order in full or part thereof and may also purchase such material from elsewhere at the risk and cost of the supplier.
If the supplier fails to deliver the modules as per the accepted delivery schedule, a penalty will be imposed and realized at 1% per week subject to a maximum of 10% of delayed supply after two weeks.
REIL has stated that 25% of the tendered quantity has been reserved for micro and small enterprise (MSE) suppliers. Out of the 25% tendered quantity reserved for MSE suppliers, 20% has been earmarked for procurement by MSEs owned by Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe entrepreneurs.
MSE vendors quoting within the price band of lowest (L1) + 15% will be allowed to supply the portion of the requirement subject to the acceptance of the L1 bid price.
Indigenous manufacturers will be given preference subject to meeting quality standards and specifications.
The solar cells to be supplied as a part of the package should be multicrystalline or monocrystalline with a capacity greater than or equal to 4.67 W and five busbars in length. The cells should be 156*156 ± 1.0 mm or 156.75*156.75 ± 1.0 mm in dimension. The thickness of the cells should be 200 +/- 20 µm.
Recently, REIL <a href="https://mercomindia.com/reil-200000-mono-multicrystalline-cells/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">issued</a> a tender to supply 200,000 monocrystalline or multicrystalline silicon solar cells of 4.57 Watt.
Subscribe to Mercom’s <a href="https://mercomindia.com/product/india-solar-tender-tracker/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">India Solar Tender Tracker</a> for timely updates on all solar tenders issued by various agencies in India.

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