Solar power: Some bright spots, many clouds

Plummeting tariffs in the solar market are encouraging states to renege on earlier contracts, even as increasing imports of solar panel are dimming the prospects for domestic manufacturers

For the solar power sector, 2017 was a year of sunshine and shadows – from new lows in tariffs to a novel set of market challenges.

In May 2017, solar tariff breached Rs 2.5 per unit and stooped to Rs 2.44 in the bidding for a 500 Mw solar park in Rajasthan. With that, solar tariffs felt 80 per cent in six years. At the same time, capacity grew to 14,750 Mw from a negligible 2 Mw during the same period.

This year also marked the entry of global players, the exit of some, projects changing hands and global funds lining up