Guj leads in rooftop solar installations in H1 2024

Ahmedabad: As India is pacing fast in encouraging renewable energy adoption in the country, Gujarat is certainly taking the lead in both generating capacities and promoting adoption. According to the latest report of Mercom India, Gujarat topped the country's rooftop solar capacity addition in the first half of 2024.
The state contributed 44% (486.7MW) of the total 1.1GW of rooftop installations that took place in India, according to estimated computations based on the report.
This was followed by Maharashtra (179.3MW), Kerala (84.1MW), Karnataka (58.57MW), and Haryana (51.32MW). The top five states collectively accounted for 78% of the total installations in H1 of 2024, according to the report.
According to the Mercom India report, residential solar installations surged by almost 923% quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) across India, making up over 72% of the projects commissioned during the quarter. Residential installations under the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana were among the key reasons for the rise in installations here in Gujarat.
Under this scheme, a subsidy of Rs 30,000 per kilowatt is provided for residential rooftop installation on the roof of a house ranging from 1-2kW. Similarly, Rs 18,000 per kW of subsidy is provided for 3-4kW of installations, thus making a total subsidy amount of Rs 78,000 for up to 3kW.
In 2023-24, consumers in Gujarat earned a cumulative revenue of Rs 1,891 crore by selling excess electricity to govt at the rate of Rs 2.25 per unit.
During a comprehensive review meeting of the work done by Gujarat under the central govt's PM Surya Ghar Yojana held in Gandhinagar on Tuesday, Jaiprakash Shivhare, managing director, Gujarat Energy Development Corporation Limited-GUVNL, said, "So far, 11 lakh houses have been registered to install solar rooftops, out of which more than 1.65 lakh houses have been installed with solar rooftops while the remaining work is in progress." According to Mercom, the average cost of rooftop solar systems increased by more than 12% quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) after six consecutive quarters of decline, largely due to the growing use of modules that meet domestic content requirements.
"After overcoming initial setbacks, we can anticipate consistently higher installation rates in the residential segment moving forward. Nevertheless, the success of the programme could be hindered by domestic module availability, component shortages, and escalating costs if these issues are not resolved," said Raj Prabhu, CEO of Mercom Capital Group.