Harnessing Solar energy, Options for India

decentralised in that banks and other financial institutions can initiate proposals and are channel
partners in the disbursement of the funds, in addition to the state nodal agencies (SNAs). Under the
scheme, various off-grid PV systems up to a maximum capacity of 100 kW p will be supported by the
ministry. It is expected that systems above 100 kW p will largely be grid-connected. Some of the
salient features of the new guidelines include:
1. The guidelines for off-grid projects involve an upfront capital subsidy of `90 per W p and a
soft loan of 5% for 50% of the capital cost. The customer must pay 20% of the cost towards a
down payment. The benchmark costs are estimated to be `300 per W p. This sum includes
five years of annual maintenance of the system. The loans will be routed through the
National Bank for Agricultural and Rural Development (NABARD). 3
2. Performance standards have been mandated for the components of the systems. Product
specifications for grant of subsidy have not been given, as was the case previously, thereby
giving latitude to service providers to innovate and customise their products as per end-user
requirements with performance standards. This is a welcome change.
3. For programme administrators like SNAs, who used to be the sole channel previously, 70%
of the funds will be disbursed on sanction and the rest on completion of the project, as
compared to 50% of each earlier. Release of funds will be back-ended to other entities.
4. Monitoring and evaluation is proposed at two levels. At the first level, all deployment will be
given certain parameters for complying with IT-enabled transparency requirements. The
projects might be required to provide brief details, photographs and possibly the details of
beneficiaries on an online portal of the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency
(IREDA). At the second level, there is a proposal to bring in civil society organisations,
eminent persons and corporate houses for the monitoring and verification of the projects.
5. The scheme will be reviewed by an internal review committee at half-yearly and yearly
intervals, and modifications therein will be incorporated by the ministry within the
framework of boundary conditions.
The implementation process continues to be in project mode, a as it is argued that this aids in focused
deployment in both region and application. 4 The negatives, however, could be higher transaction
costs and delays in approval, which could lead to uncertainty and risks for the project developers. A
more rigorous social audit along the lines of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act (MNREGA) should be encouraged for evaluation of projects under the JNNSM. Overall,
the new guidelines have brought in some welcome enhancements to the previous MNRE policy
under the solar PV programme.
1.2. Technology Choices, Economics and Policy
A range of solutions is needed to successfully electrify un-electrified villages, hamlets and individual
houses that are in electrified villages but not grid-connected. These solutions should be affordable to
the poor as well as economically sustainable. Households in electrified villages that either have no
access or unreliable access to electricity can potentially be electrified using solar lanterns or SHLS,
provided that they are in regions with moderate to high solar insolation. However, for villages that
are un-electrified, grid extension or a microgrid implementation based on a portfolio of renewable
sources could be options for successful electrification.
a The ‘project’ has to be initiated by renewable energy service providing companies (RESCOs) or systems
integrators. Project report to include details on client and implementation. The bureaucratic hurdles to get the
‘project’ approved are unclear.
Solar Photovoltaic Applications CSTEP | Page 62