The Government of India has set an ambitious target to achieve 100 GW solar capacities by 2022 through its untapped abundant solar resource. Out of this 100 GW, 60 GW is to achieve through utility-scale and 40 GW through rooftop solar. Proactive measures by the government have made it possible to get closer to the utility-scale target. On the other hand, the rooftop photovoltaic (RTPV) sector has seen slower progress despite high subsidies and incentives to consumers.
Rooftop solar projects have not experienced a high growth rate as compared to ground-mounted solar projects. According to Bridge to India, India had installed 6.8 GW of cumulative rooftop PV capacity by the end of 2020, with consumer-owned systems accounting for about 72% of the total.
Reasons For Modest Uptake of Grid-connected Rooftop Solar Systems
➠ Individual installation approach
➠ Lack of asset securitization
➠ Non-bankable PPA
➠ High transaction costs for the developers, etc.
Demand aggregation for rooftop solar can accelerate the uptake in India. Marketing costs which form a significant portion of the total expenditure of the developers can also be reduced by aggregating the rooftop solar demand. States can adopt the aggregation route for accelerating the installation of rooftop solar systems in the state. In this process, the aggregated demand in the geography is bid out to the developers, thereby decreasing the effective transaction costs of the developers due to aggregation and economies of scale. Interest from various developers is solicited for the aggregated demand and the demand is then awarded to the most qualified bidder. The asset is securitized by developing the draft model PPA format post consultations with all the stakeholders involved, including the lenders.
Several projects have shown that by aggregating demand, the problems of customer acquisition cost and lack of awareness could be solved. This can be done by targeting industrial unions and housing societies, all avenues where people of similar energy requirements and roof types can be brought together.
According to Mercom India Rooftop Solar Market Report Q2 2021, ‘India added 521 megawatts (MW) of rooftop solar capacity in the second quarter (Q2) of the calendar year (CY) 2021, a 53% increase quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) compared to 341 MW installed in Q1 2021 (January-March).’
