ENERGY/SOLAR
cent for Brazil. Then why is the SRT sector not able to take off in India? Understanding this is important at a time when the government is rolling out phase-II of Grid Connected Rooftop (GCRT) Solar Programme to give new impetus to the SRT sector.
So far, SRT sector has largely remained a non-performer in India because installing it and recovering the investment is an arduous task for residential consumers. In Delhi, says Ashok Kumar Jha, assistant general manager with Indraprastha Power Generation Company Ltd, several residents welfare associations (RWAs) had to scrap SRT projects after they failed to arrange financiers. Banks consider the projects as high-risk loan despite the Reserve Bank of India including the sector in its “priority sector lending” norms. Subsidies on SRT systems, as assured by the government, are also hard to come by. In 2017, the RWA of Wellington Estate in Gurugram, Haryana, installed a 200 kW SRT system by paying `1.05 crore from its own pocket. “We should have received 30 per cent of subsidy soon after installing the system but are yet to get it,” says resident Vineeth Bagga. In Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, P S Thaha installed a 15 kW grid-connected SRT system in 2018. Though he could avail the subsidy within a couple of months and now saves almost `1.4 lakh a year on his electricity bills, it will take him more than seven years to recover the investment.
Thaha is, however, worried about the payment he is supposed to receive for the excess electricity his SRT system feeds into the grid. Like most prosumers (producerconsumers), Thaha has installed a net-meter, under which the surplus electricity generated is supplied to the grid. discoms allow prosumers to “bank” this power for a year and draw it back at any point. At the end of the “banking” period, discoms compensate consumers for any excess generation. But when he approached the Kerala State Electricity Board, officials said they were still working on a tariff plan for compensating him. Moreover, there are examples of inordinate delay in installation of net-meters. The Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation Ltd admits to year-long delays in installing netmeters
SO FAR, SOLAR ROOFTOP SECTOR HAS LARGELY REMAINED A NON-PERFORMER IN THE COUNTRY AS INSTALLING IT AND RECOVERING THE INVESTMENT IS AN ARDUOUS TASK FOR RESIDENTIAL CONSUMERS
in 2017, which rendered all SRT systems worthless for the period.
BUT BIG ONES BENEFIT
The only segment that appears to have benefitted are commercial and industrial (C&I) establishments. They are responsible for 70 per cent of all SRT systems, as per Bridge to India, a leading knowledge service provider in the Indian renewable energy market. Apart from the huge rooftop space available at C&I
establishments and their technological and maintenance capability, the reason they have taken to SRT is the economic benefit it provides in a relatively short period. Since the power tariff for commercial installations in India is much higher than what it is for the residential sector, C&I establishments can recover their capital investment in just five years. A case in point is Cochin airport, which has a 40 MW installation that powers all its operations. “Annually, the system saves the airport a significant R1.1 crore, which will help us recover the cost in four to five years,” says Satish Kumar Pai, chief engineer, Cochin International Airport Ltd.
Unfortunately, C&I establishments will no longer be eligible for government subsidy in GCRT phaseII. This might dampen the interest of the only segment that has exhibited an appetite for SRT systems. What’s worse, under the new regime, discoms that have been dragging their feet over SRT system installations, will be the sole facilitators. They will also be responsible for subsidy disbursal, notes the guidelines issued in August 2019. While the guidelines have set parameters for incentivising discoms for creating an ecosystem for expeditious implementation of SRT projects, it appears too small for the cash-strapped utilities.
Industry experts offer a few suggestions that can help the country realise its full rooftop solar potential. Neha Agrawal, head of corporate strategy, Vikram Solar, says the government should offer easy financing options, set up a larger fund for SRT subsidies and ensure their faster disbursal. Ritu Lal, senior vice-president at Amplus Solar, however, suggests the need for structural reforms in electricity tariff. For a large segment of households, electricity tariffs do not reflect the true cost of electricity supply. Reserving these subsidies only for the poor and agricultural communities will force high-income households to shift to cheaper SRT systems.
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