The Centre’s proposed rooftop solar power solutions for one crore homes across the country are expected to provide 30-40 GW of rooftop solar installation opportunities over the next 2-3 years, according to industry representatives.

The Centre plans to light up 10 million homes across India with clean power under the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana’ scheme.

Last week Prime Minister Modi launched the rooftop solar scheme and said in a tweet: “In order to further sustainable development and people’s wellbeing, we are launching the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana. This project, with an investment of over Rs 75,000 crore, aims to light up 1 crore households by providing up to 300 units of free electricity every month.

He also said substantive subsidies and concessional bank loans would be offered to ensure that there is no cost burden on the people. All stakeholders will be integrated into a National Online Portal, which will be a further convenience. “The scheme will lead to more income, lesser power bills and employment generation for people,” he added.

Praveen Sinha, Managing Director & CEO of Tata Power, had earlier indicated that the company expected a capacity addition of nearly 30 to 40 GW of rooftop opportunity in the next two to three years through the proposed rooftop programme,

Tata Power sees good potential to be a leading supplier for the scheme as it has 4.9 GW of in-house solar modules and cell manufacturing capacities in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. The company has emerged as a prominent player in the rooftop space, with a market share of 18 per cent.

As per data for solar module manufacturing capacity enlisted in the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) or applied for enlistment in ALMM and independent assessment by the Nation Institute of Solar Energy (NISE), the installed solar PV module manufacturing capacity in the country is about 50 GW. As per industry information, the installed capacity of solar cell manufacturing in the country is about 6 GW.

“The country has achieved self-sufficiency in the production of solar modules/ panels, but the country is yet to achieve substantial capacity in the production of solar cells, R K Singh, Secretary, Union Minister for New & Renewable Energy, told the Rajya Sabha a couple of weeks ago.

Industry analysts reckon that the PM’s programme will not only promote sustainable energy practices, but will also give some financial relief to households.

Rating agency Crisil estimates the Suryoday Yojana would result in capacity addition of 20-22 GW. “If fully implemented, this will help to achieve 80-85 per cent of the overall government target of 40 GW in rooftop solar installation,” said Miren Lodha, Director-Research, CRISIL Market Intelligence & Analytics.

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