India has set an ambitious target of 175 GW of renewable energy by 2022. Of the target to install 175 GW RE by 2022, 100 GW has to come from solar — 40 GW rooftop solar and 60 GW ground-mounted utility scales. The solar segment has the lion’s share in India’s promise of 175GW by 2032.
According to Mercom India Research, India’s total solar installations have reached 50 GW as of February 2022. Out of this 50 GW, 43 GW came from utility-scale solar and 7 GW from rooftop solar. It is a significant milestone for India as it has set a target of 100 GW by the end of 2022. Currently, India has a development pipeline of a grid-connected rooftop solar program of 53 GW.
India crossed the 40 GW mark in March 2021. The National Solar Misson has set the target of 20 GW by 2022 but later it was revised to 100 GW by 2022. In May 2019, India has achieved the 30 GW milestones.
According to Annual India Solar Market Update, India installed a record 10 GW of the new solar capacity in 2021 which is a big jump of 210% YOY compared to 3.2 GW installed in 2020.
The 50 GW milestone is a great accomplishment for India. The country added 10 GW of solar energy in 2021 despite many obstacles like the COVID-19 pandemic, disruptions in the global solar supply chain, and an increase in the cost of raw materials. The installation could have gone higher if there were no policy uncertainties and market volatility.
At the end of 2021, solar accounted for 12.4% of total installed power capacity and 32% of total installed renewable capacity. In 2021, the newly built grid-connected rooftop solar programme set a new high, accounting for 62 percent of overall electricity capacity increases.
