Sterlite Power Bags Transmission Project to Evacuate 4.5 GW Renewable Energy

NRL Floats EoI to Supply Renewable Power for a Green Hydrogen Project

DISCOM Dues to Power Generators Rise to ₹529 Billion in March 2025

Electric Vehicle Sales Clock 3% YoY Growth in Q1 2025

IREDA’s FY 2025 Loan Approvals Grow 27% YoY

Bihar Adds Distributed Renewable Energy to its Proposed RPO Targets

Madhya Pradesh Regulator Allows Solar Developer to Enhance DC Capacity

Jodhpur DISCOM Invites EoI for 2.4 GW Solar Projects

Prozeal Green Energy Files Draft Papers for ₹7 Billion IPO

Lower Home Solution Segment Sales Reduce SMA Solar’s Revenue by 20%

<table id="amazon-polly-audio-table">
						<tr>
						<td id="amazon-polly-audio-tab">
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-label">Listen to this article</div>
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-container">
			<audio class="amazon-ai-player" id="amazon-ai-player" preload="none" controls controlsList="nodownload" >
				<source type="audio/mpeg" src="https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/amazon_polly_77063.mp3?version=1741595270">
			</audio>
		</div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-subscribe-tab"></div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-by-tab"></div>
						</td>
						</tr>
					</table>India installed 3.2 GW of rooftop solar capacity in 2024, an 86% increase from 2023, according to Mercom India Research&#8217;s newly released <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/product/rooftop-solar-market-report-q4-2024" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Q4 &amp; Annual 2024 India Rooftop Solar Market Report.  </a>
The capacity additions were mainly driven by the record commissioning of rooftop solar systems under the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana.
Consumers in the residential segment benefitted from the PM Surya Ghar program, accounting for 74% of the installations in 2024. Industrial, commercial, and government segments contributed 19%, 6%, and 0.8% to the total capacity added during the year.
Installations under the capital expenditure (CAPEX) model comprised 88% of the year&#8217;s installations, and capacity additions under the operational expenditure or renewable energy service company (OPEX/RESCO) model accounted for the rest.
&#8220;The overwhelming response to the PM Surya Ghar residential solar program is a testament to growing homeowner interest in solar adoption, making up over 72%  of rooftop installations in India. However, long-term success will depend on stabilizing module costs and streamlining supply constraints to support both residential and C&amp;I solar expansion,&#8221; said Raj Prabhu, CEO of Mercom Capital Group.
Gujarat led the rooftop solar capacity additions in 2024, with 36% of the total installations, followed by Maharashtra, with 20%, and Kerala, adding 9%.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-77064 size-full aligncenter" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture1-final.png" alt="" width="940" height="533" srcset="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture1-final.png 940w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture1-final-300x170.png 300w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture1-final-768x435.png 768w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture1-final-650x369.png 650w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture1-final-624x354.png 624w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture1-final-600x340.png 600w" sizes="(max-width: 940px) 100vw, 940px" />
India&#8217;s cumulative rooftop solar installations reached 13.7 GW at the end of December 2024.
During the year, 2.8 GW of rooftop solar tenders were released, marking a increase year-over-year (YoY).
Over 43% of this capacity came from tenders aimed at installing rooftop solar systems on government buildings throughout India.
In the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2024, India added 1.3 GW of rooftop solar, a 64% quarter-over-quarter increase from 791.1 MW. The installations in Q4 surpassed all previous quarterly additions to date.
Installations in the residential segment under the PM Surya Ghar program drove capacity additions in the quarter, accounting for over 85% of the capacity additions. Capacity additions under the CAPEX model accounted for over 95% of the quarter&#8217;s installations.
Priya Sanjay, Managing Director, Mercom India, said, &#8220;In previous quarters, C&amp;I consumers were holding back on installations waiting for clarity on the exemption from ALMM. With better clarity, they are now focusing on procuring modules and building the projects.&#8221;
State-wise installations
Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh led rooftop solar installations in Q4, accounting for around 33%, 26%, and 8%, respectively.
&#8220;Gujarat has always been rigorous in eliminating two subsidized consumers – residential and farmers. Gujarat&#8217;s DISCOMs are making residential consumers independent by setting up rooftop solar projects and solar pumps for the farmers. That explains why the state has been leading the installations,&#8221; Sanjay said.
She anticipates Gujarat continuing its growth in the upcoming quarters as well.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-77065 size-full" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture2-final.png" alt="" width="909" height="667" srcset="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture2-final.png 909w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture2-final-300x220.png 300w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture2-final-768x564.png 768w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture2-final-650x477.png 650w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture2-final-624x458.png 624w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Picture2-final-600x440.png 600w" sizes="(max-width: 909px) 100vw, 909px" />
The PM Surya Ghar program installations significantly boosted capacity this quarter, accounting for more than 85% of total additions. The industrial, commercial, and government sectors contributed 10%, 4%, and 0.6% to the quarter&#8217;s installations.
Under the CAPEX model, capacity additions accounted for over 95% of the quarter&#8217;s installations.  In all, over 1 GW of tenders were announced, over 185% QoQ increase from 364.5 MW and more than 84% YoY from 564.8 MW.
Gujarat remains the leading state, accounting for over 29% of cumulative rooftop solar installations, followed by Maharashtra and Rajasthan, comprising around 15% and 7%, respectively.
The top 10 states accounted for over 80% of cumulative rooftop solar installations as of December 2024.
The Q4 &amp; Annual 2024 India Rooftop Solar Market Report is 79 pages and covers all facets of India&#8217;s rooftop solar market. For the complete report, visit: <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/product/rooftop-solar-market-report-q4-2024" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://www.mercomindia.com/product/rooftop-solar-market-report-q4-2024 </a>

India’s Rooftop Solar Installations Reach a Record 3.2 GW in 2024

The rooftop is the Achilles&#8217; heel of India’s solar story. The lack of regulations for product quality certification, intense competition, and absence of requisite awareness have only emboldened the problem.
The increasingly fierce competition in the solar industry has resulted in low prices for rooftop installers. Installers are now offering extremely aggressive tariffs as low as ₹3.8-3.9 (~$0.0559)/kWh. At these low rates, the use of poor quality materials has become widespread. Some rooftop installers are bidding for projects in the ₹30.6 million/MW range considered to be completely unviable by many in the industry.
The compromise in quality can be seen in installations across the country. For example, the cables used in rooftop solar systems can often be found to be thin in diameter and of poor quality. Many customers don&#8217;t realize that they are getting lower quality cables that are 1.2 MM, 1.3/1.4 MM regular cables instead of the preferred fire-proof cables.
An executive at Vindhya Tele Links a new entrant in the solar PV cable business, told Mercom, “There is no Indian standard for cables, but there is an international standard BSEN 50618 for solar PV cables, and the industry follows this standard. Every cable manufacturer needs to have an in-house testing facility and the certification is given only after having adequate infrastructure and rigorous testing.  But many local players also use fake branding and certification to sell their cables.”
Similarly, in structures, lower grade aluminium is used to reduce the overall cost. A standard quality of the steel structure would normally cost ₹3.5 (~$0.0515)-4 (~$0.0589)/W, but few of the local vendors at the location sites are selling in the range of ₹1 (~$0.0147) – 4 (~$0.0589)/W.
There are other quality concerns that are plaguing the rooftop sector. The absence of regulations and standard product quality certification have encouraged fly-by-night operators to provide false or misleading claims about their products. Should the product fail, a consumer will not be able to get coverage under the warranty even if the product is in the warranty period because the company might not be around to provide it.
Mercom’s news team got in touch with a few rooftop installers in the country to dig deeper into the problem. Talking to Mercom, Shyam Sundar, the CEO of <a href="http://www.amsunenergy.com/home-1.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Amsun Energy</a> said, “It is easy for bigger players to reduce the price as they procure the materials in bulk, but smaller players cannot offer the same price as they do not have the advantage of economies of scale.”
Elaborating further, he said, “Large developers do not focus on rooftop, but due to a lack of awareness, consumers compare the cost of installation with utility scale and expect similar cost. It is not feasible for a small and medium size rooftop installers to match the cost of a MW installation with a kW installation.”
The rooftop sector is tougher in comparison to the utility segment and most big private players are staying away for now. With the industry still in its nascent phase, the government’s decision to cancel its channel partners program has resulted in the entry of many unqualified installers and material suppliers. The lack of awareness among consumers means they have no idea who a quality installer is.
Manpreet Singh, the director at JS Solar Tech, believes that the standardisation in only equipment and materials are not enough. “There has to be certification of installers too. If not, any electrician can claim to be a solar PV installer. This can prove to be very costly,” he told Mercom.
The situation, however, is very different in developed markets where there are strict quality requirements and getting away with sub-standard products is not easy. But in countries like India and China there is an obsession with showing higher numbers while paying little to no respect to proper quality checks. Too often, the return on investment is also seen only in monetary terms and do not quantify the benefits and factor social and environmental benefits of their green projects.
Sachin Jain, the co-founder and chief executing officer of solar engineering procurement and construction (EPC) firm <a href="https://mercomindia.com/oriano-project-first-solar-karnataka/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Oriano Solar</a> in <a href="https://mercomindia.com/oriano-solar-sachin-jain-interview/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">an interview to Mercom had recently commented</a>, “Currently, the country lacks the required awareness and rating system for  solar rooftop viability to powering SMEs and households.”
The repercussions of using sub-standard products for solar installations were also seen in utility scale solar projects when parts of northern India were hit with widespread storms recently. <a href="https://mercomindia.com/storms-affect-solar-assets-north-indian-states/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mercom reported</a> that dust storms have affected many solar assets in north India because of these types of cost cutting practices by companies that have used poor quality products for their installations. Even though the affected projects were large-scale, the consequence of poor quality is still evident.
“Poor quality installations if not brought under control will affect all installers in the country as word spreads among consumers about unviable projects and poor-quality installs that may not last long. Though nobody likes over regulation. the current scenario in the residential rooftop segment is untenable,” said Raj Prabhu, CEO of Mercom Capital Group.
India plans to achieve 40 GW of <a href="https://mercomindia.com/rooftop-subsidy-delays-india/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rooftop solar</a> as part of its broader goal of achieving 100 GW of solar capacity across the country by 2022.
According to the <a href="https://mercomindia.com/product/india-solar-project-tracker/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mercom India Solar Project Tracker</a>, India has an installed capacity of ~2 GW of solar rooftop installations as of March 2018.
&nbsp;

Quality of Rooftop Solar Projects Suffer Due to Lack of Standards and Intense Competition

Mercom Communications India, a subsidiary of Mercom Capital Group, today released its quarterly update on the Indian solar market.
For the complete report, visit: <a href="https://mercomindia.com/product/q1-2017-india-solar-market-report/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">MercomQ12017IndiaSolarReport</a>
The Indian solar sector is witnessing strong growth with cumulative installations reaching approximately 12.8 GW at the end of Q1 2017. Utility-scale projects account for about 12 GW while rooftop installations accounted for almost 850 MW of the installed capacity. The newly released <a href="https://mercomindia.com/product/q1-2017-india-solar-market-report/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Q1 India Quarterly Market Update</a> forecasts 2017 installations to reach approximately 10 GW, a ~130 percent increase year-over-year compared to 4.3 GW installed last year as India becomes one of the top solar markets in the world after China and the United States. The pipeline of Indian utility-scale projects is currently ~12.6 GW and there are approximately 6.4 GW of tenders pending auction.
Six states now have installed capacity of over 1 GW.
“Solar in India has come a long way and 2017 is forecasted to be the best year by far. Rapidly falling tariffs have resulted in solar closing in on parity with coal in recent auctions, which is expected to increase demand in the future. However, tender activity has slowed recently and the government needs to address transmission bottlenecks, finances of distribution companies and slowing demand for continued growth,” commented Raj Prabhu, CEO and Co-Founder of Mercom Capital Group.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/India_Solar_Demand_Forecast_MW.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-5617" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/India_Solar_Demand_Forecast_MW.png" alt="" width="653" height="361" srcset="https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/India_Solar_Demand_Forecast_MW.png 653w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/India_Solar_Demand_Forecast_MW-600x332.png 600w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/India_Solar_Demand_Forecast_MW-300x166.png 300w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/India_Solar_Demand_Forecast_MW-650x359.png 650w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/India_Solar_Demand_Forecast_MW-624x345.png 624w" sizes="(max-width: 653px) 100vw, 653px" /></a>
Extremely competitive reverse auctions fueled by pent-up demand from slowing tender and auction activity are continuing to drive bids to record low levels. Solar tariffs have declined by ~75 percent since 2010. In the recently conducted 250 MW Kadapa Solar Park auction in Andhra Pradesh, bids reached a new record low of ₹3.15 (~$0.048)/kWh, following the Rewa Solar Park auction in Madhya Pradesh, where bids reached ₹3.30 (~$0.494)/kWh (levelized tariff over 25 years), over a rupee lower than the previous low tariff of ₹4.34 (~$0.065)/kWh (recorded in the state of Rajasthan in January 2016).
Tender and auction activity has been slowing down over the last couple of quarters. According to Mercom&#8217;s India Solar Project Tracker, only about 1.9 GW of solar was tendered in Q1 2017 (1 GW of this was retendered), compared to 3.4 GW in Q4 last year. There were 1.3 GW of solar projects auctioned in Q1 2017, compared to 255 MW in Q4 2016. The slowdown in activity has been disconcerting to developers and manufacturers that have been positioning for much higher levels of activity based on India’s solar installation goal of 100 GW by 2022.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/India__Utility-Scale_Solar_Projects_by_Status_MW2.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-5618" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/India__Utility-Scale_Solar_Projects_by_Status_MW2.png" alt="" width="333" height="255" srcset="https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/India__Utility-Scale_Solar_Projects_by_Status_MW2.png 333w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/India__Utility-Scale_Solar_Projects_by_Status_MW2-300x230.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 333px) 100vw, 333px" /></a>
Chinese module prices in India have continued to slide with average selling prices coming to $0.32 (~₹20.68)/W in the first quarter of 2017 an 11 percent decrease from $0.36 (~₹23.27)/W in Q4 2016. Chinese module prices have now fallen by about 33 percent in the last 12 months enabling the recent low bids of ₹3.30 (~$0.05)/kWh in Rewa and ₹3.15 (~$0.048)/kWh in Kadapa.
Rooftop installations in India have totaled nearly 850 MW as of Q1 2017. The government is targeting 40 GW by 2022 through rooftop installations, but policy support currently is minimal. Over 20 states have some net-metering policy, but few have a functioning net-metering program. Other issues affecting rooftop installations include lower accelerated depreciation, and the removal of the 10-year income tax holiday.
“Even with some of the challenges, we expect the Indian solar sector to remain one of the most important markets in the world over the next five years,” said Priya Sanjay, Managing Director of Mercom Communications India.
For the complete report, visit: <a href="https://mercomindia.com/product/q1-2017-india-solar-market-report/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">MercomQ12017IndiaSolarReport</a>.
&nbsp;

A Record Year for India Forecasted with Approximately 10 GW of Solar Installations in 2017

According to Mercom Capital Group’s latest report, <a href="http://bit.ly/MercomIndiaAug2016Form">India Solar Quarterly Market Update</a>, large scale project development in India is largely fragmented but we are starting to see a shift towards the sector dominated by large corporations and private equity-backed players.
The Adani Group, an infrastructure and power conglomerate, which entered the solar sector just over two years ago now has the largest overall solar project pipeline in India with almost 2 GW.
The Adani Group, with approximately 11 percent market share, has the most projects under development in India followed by ReNew Power, a wind and solar company backed by Goldman Sachs with ~10 percent market share. Soon to be acquired SunEdison has ~8.5 percent, ACME has ~8 percent, Azure has ~5 percent, Tata Power has 3.8 percent, Suzlon and Hero Future Energies have 3.7 percent of the large-scale solar market each.  
The top 20 developers account for almost 80 percent of projects under development. In a tough market driven by hyper-competitive reverse auctions and low margins, large conglomerates with deep pockets and strong balance sheets that can access financing at much lower rates, private equity-backed firms, and international companies with access to cheaper funding abroad are well-positioned to dominate the sector. Other than one-off projects, smaller developers will struggle to grow as financing, low bids, and the policy push towards larger projects will make growth challenging.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4161" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Top20Pipeline.png" alt="" width="631" height="336" srcset="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Top20Pipeline.png 631w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Top20Pipeline-300x160.png 300w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Top20Pipeline-624x332.png 624w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Top20Pipeline-600x319.png 600w" sizes="(max-width: 631px) 100vw, 631px" />
Tata Power Leads with Installed Capacity
With the acquisition of Welspun’s project portfolio, Tata Power currently has the largest solar installed capacity in India with approximately 9 percent. Tata Power is followed by ACME with 7 percent and SunEdison with approximately 5.5 percent (acquisition of SunEdison pending) and Adani with 5 percent. The top 20 developers only account for approximately 58 percent of the 8.1 GW installed capacity and over 500+ other companies account for the rest.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4160" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/LeadingDevelopers.png" alt="" width="659" height="374" srcset="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/LeadingDevelopers.png 659w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/LeadingDevelopers-300x170.png 300w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/LeadingDevelopers-650x369.png 650w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/LeadingDevelopers-624x354.png 624w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/LeadingDevelopers-600x341.png 600w" sizes="(max-width: 659px) 100vw, 659px" />
Tata Power Leads Solar Rooftop Installations
Tata Power leads as the top rooftop installer in India with more than 100 MW, however the market is still very small.
Rooftop solar is struggling to take off in India with 601 MW installed so far. Current incentives have not been enough to move the market forward. Even though there is net-metering policy and policy proposals in many states, implementation has been spotty. It takes six to eight months in some states just to process paperwork. There are currently no subsidies available for commercial and industrial customers, which make up almost 70 percent of the rooftop market. Accelerated depreciation is set to come down to 40 percent in FY 2017-18 from the existing 80 percent. The government’s decision to increase solar parks from 20 GW to 40 GW to make up for slow rooftop adoption indicates that the 40 GW rooftop solar goal by 2022 is not rooftop dependent.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4162" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/LeadingSolarRooftopInstallers-India.png" alt="" width="534" height="438" srcset="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/LeadingSolarRooftopInstallers-India.png 534w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/LeadingSolarRooftopInstallers-India-300x246.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 534px) 100vw, 534px" />

rooftop-installations

Get the most relevant India solar and clean energy news.

RECENT POSTS