- Fourteen projects have been penalized for missing the January 9th 2012 deadline for commissioning under the NSM. They have lost a cumulative amount of INR280m (EUR4.3m) in bank guarantees.
- The Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission (GERC) has imposed penalties on 370MW worth of projects for missing the December 31st 2012 deadline for commissioning under the Gujarat solar policy.
- Competitive bidding for projects is yet to take place under the Karnataka and Rajasthan solar policies.
- Odisha has allotted five projects worth a cumulative 25MW through a competitive bidding process which has resulted in a tariff of INR7 (EUR0.10)/kWh, the lowest in India so far. These projects are outside of a comprehensive solar policy and are meant to help the state meet its RPO.
- For batch one of phase one of the NSM, only nine projects (45MW) out of the allocated 30 projects (150MW) came online before the deadline of January 9th 2012.
- As of January 28th 2012, the beginning of the new tariff regime, 600.5MW capacity was officially completed under the Gujarat solar policy. However, only 280MW had been actually commissioned before this date. The remaining projects have been categorized as ‘deemed to be commissioned’ and are exempt from the new tariff regime.
- Andhra Pradesh signed a solar power agreement with Welspun Energy to set up a 100MW solar PV project in Anantapur district of the state.
- At present, the US EXIM bank is the most popular source of funding. It has financed close to 65MW worth of projects in India and has close to 315MW in the pipeline.
- Indian module manufacturers like Vikram Solar are investing in integrating along the value chain in order to improve their competitive position in the market.
- Solar is competitive as a power solution for telecom towers, depending on their consumption and location.
- A Renewable Energy Service Company (RESCO) business model appears to be the most viable to tackle the solar opportunity in the telecom tower segment.
- The current quarter will see 320MW of PV installed capacity, led by the completion of projects under the NSM and the Gujarat solar policy.
For more detail on the Indian market, subscribe to the India Solar Compass April 2012.
