India to install 1300-1400 MW solar power in 2013

India is likely to see additional installation of 1300 MW to 1400 MW of solar power this year, clean energy consulting company Mercom Capital Group has said.

According to Mercom Capital Group, India installed 980 MW in 2012, slightly lower than the forecast of 1,090 MW.

"The difference was largely due to delays in Gujarat to commission 144.5 MW of PV projects. Moreover, most states missed their renewable portfolio obligations (RPO) goals as enforcement is almost non-existent," Mercom Capital Group CEO and Co-Founder Raj Prabhu said.

The cumulative installations to date in India currently stands at over 1,200 MW and going by the Mercom's projections, India is likely to install another 1,300-1,400 MW in 2013.

Indian solar installations have been driven by the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM) with a goal to install 20,000 MW of solar power by 2022, and various state policies and state RPOs (renewable portfolio obligations).

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) recently proposed a draft Phase II policy and opened it up for comments. Phase II would have a target of achieving 3,000 -9,000 MW of solar power through various batches as previously seen in Phase I.

Meanwhile, the global solar installation numbers for 2012 are likely to be in the 30-32 GW range, Mercom Capital said adding that "in 2013 solar installations would likely touch 34.5 GW."

Along with Germany, some of the markets that drove installation growth last year were Italy, China, France, Japan, United States, India, and the UK. Greece, Bulgaria, Belgium and Australia were also major contributors.

"Based on current forecasts it looks like the significant share of installations in 2013 will come from emerging solar markets like China, Japan and India," Prabhu said.