India focuses on residential rooftop PV, EV infrastructure in new budget

Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has submitted an interim national budget for fiscal 2024-25 to parliament, with a focus on residential rooftop solar, funding for offshore wind, and support for EV manufacturing and charging infrastructure.

Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman (center)

Image: Govt of India

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From pv magazine India

Rooftop solarization will reduce electricity bills for residential consumers in India, while offering additional income from surplus electricity generation. The scheme also expands the market for PV installers and PV component manufacturers.

Rooftop solarization will open entrepreneurship opportunities for a large number of vendors in supply and installation, and employment opportunities for youth with technical skills in manufacturing, installation and maintenance.

“An analysis by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) suggests that 20 GW to 25 GW of rooftop solar capacity would be supported through solarization,” said Neeraj Kuldeep, senior program lead for the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW).

Kuldeep said that every Indian state could take advantage of rooftop solar energy, as its potential exists nationwide. Unlike utility-scale solar, which is mostly limited to seven renewable energy-rich states, rooftop solar offers opportunities across the country. CEEW's analysis has identified technical potential for 637 GW for rooftop solar in India.

Ishver Dholakiya, founder and managing director of Goldi Solar, said the promotion of residential rooftop solarization will catalyze new opportunities in the growing solar sector. He said he anticipates major announcements, especially in areas like manufacturing, imports, and technological advancements, when the full budget is presented in July 2024, following upcoming elections.

pv magazine print edition

The February edition of pv magazine, out on Thursday, considers the ramifications of Dubai’s COP28 climate change summit for solar and asks where the workers will come from to staff the energy transition. A busy edition also ranges as far afield as Bulgaria, the South Caucasus, Cyprus, South Africa, Poland, and Navajo Nation in search of solar updates.

“India’s ground-based, grid-connected solar proliferation story is an inspiration for developed and developing countries,” said Subrahmanyam Pulipaka, CEO of the National Solar Energy Federation of India (NSEFI). “Through the Suryoday Yojana [for residential rooftops] a clear message has been sent that India is serious about not just growth but spread. Every citizen of the country will be an integral part of India’s fight against climate change.”

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