Solar open access installation rises 2-fold to 307 MW in July-Sept: Report

Solar open access installations in India jumped 85 per cent to 307 megawatt (MW) in October-December period of 2021, Mercom India Research said in a report.

The installations stood at 166 MW during the same quarter in 2020, the research firm said in its report titled "India Solar Open Access Market Report Q3 2021" on Tuesday.

According to the report, the country installed 935 MW of open access solar capacity during April-December 2021, registering a rise of 143 per cent compared to 385 MW installed during the same nine- month period of 2020.

The pipeline of solar open access projects under development and pre-construction is estimated to be over 1.1 GW (gigawatt), the report added.

It has also expanded coverage to include two new markets, Uttarakhand and Punjab. Uttar Pradesh had the most installations, constituting about 35 per cent of the projects installed during the quarter.

Maharashtra, Gujarat and Karnataka accounted for 11 per cent, 10 per cent, and 7 per cent of the installations, respectively during the quarter.

"The power crisis triggered by the depleting coal stocks in thermal power plants in Q3 2021 was a major wake-up call for the C&I (commercial and industrial) segment to opt for alternative sources of power procurement.

"Several states experienced power cuts to varying degrees, during which solar open access was the most attractive option due to the lower cost and green power," Mercom India Research said.

As of September 2021, the cumulative installed solar capacity in the open access market was 4.8 GW.

Mercom Communications India, a subsidiary of US-based Mercom Capital Group, is a clean energy research and communications firm headquartered in Bengaluru.